SCS Update 27/01/2023

National Education Union (NEU) Strike Action 1st February 2023

Dear Families,

We are writing to share an update ahead of the strike action that is taking place through the National Education Union next week. This strike action is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, 1st February 2023. This means teachers who decide to strike will not be working. Support staff may also strike in support of the focus of the industrial action. It is a formal trade dispute with the Secretary of State for Education over national pay scales. Teachers do not have to inform us in advance, but we have met with our teachers and communicated with all staff so that we can have as much information in advance as possible. 

Strike Picket Line: We have been informed that any school that remains open in Camden may have a picket line. This is to highlight the national pay dispute and is not against the school. The picket line would be at the front of the school and there are protocols to keep this safe. Children will see this as they arrive to the school on Local Authority transport. You will see this if you drop off your child to school. If you have any concerns or feel you are being blocked to enter the school, please alert one of us. We are always on gate duty at the front school gates. 

- We have confirmation that some of our teachers will be striking, and expect more teachers to strike without notice. 
- We have been informed that other unions are advising support of the strike action by not crossing the picket line.
- Staff members will not be at work because they have been informed their child’s school is closing due to strike action. 
- The total number of teachers, teaching assistants, support staff that strike will only be known at 7:30am on the day due to the national industrial action guidelines.

In preparation we are putting plans into place to try to keep the school open so that pupils that come to school for a day of activities that are safe. This means: 

- We will not run the full school curriculum on the strike day. 
- The Wednesday timetable will be cancelled for swimming, hydrotherapy, PE, art, music, and other subject areas.
- Your child will experience a different timetable if they come to school. 
- There will be no trips in the community including no lessons at the Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre.
- The catering company will make school lunches.  

The National Education Union is a union for teachers and support staff such as teaching assistants. They have a campaign that highlights the impact of the real-term funding cuts. The website reflecting the school cuts shows that impact on mainstream primary and secondary schools. It does not show any special schools at the moment and we hope that they will raise awareness because the impact of cuts are even higher for our special needs school sector. https://schoolcuts.org.uk/ 

We will provide an additional update to families on Tuesday if we have further updates from the unions or our staff. 

Yours Sincerely,
The Senior Leadership Team

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