Teacher’s strike planned in Warwickshire next month

Members are concerned about the “Department for Education’s conspicuous failure to make progress” on the dispute.

The union has said that “despite the ever more visible evidence raising doubts about the nature of many aspects of the Coalition’s education strategy, particularly the inadequacies and confusions of its ill-thought out academy and free school programme, the Secretary of State, Michael Gove refuses point blank to accept the damage that his reforms are now revealed to be doing to the teaching profession”.

The strike has been described as a “last resort” and “deeply regretful” but the date has been chosen to cause minimum disruption to examinations.

Christine Blower, general secretary of the NUT - the largest teachers’ union - said:

“Teaching is one of the best jobs in the world but is being made one of the worst under Michael Gove and the Coalition. It is time they listened. Michael Gove can still avoid the strike by engaging in serious negotiations on substantive issues.”

Other unions, Unison, GMB and Unite are planning to call upon members to take strike action on the same day.

Updates on school closures are available online. www.warwickshire.gov.uk/schoolclosures