Drapers’ Pyrgo Primary School proposes to take advantage of controversial new strike-breaking law says union.

Drapers Academy in Harold Hill has told parents it is bringing in agency workers to keep classrooms open despite a strike over support staff pay and conditions.  The National Education Union says is likely to be one of the first cases of newly legalised “strike-breaking” in England.

Staff at Drapers’ Pyrgo Primary School, are taking strike action this term over a damaging downgrading of support staff roles and a cut in their hours.  The school failed to settle the dispute in the summer term and have stated that it will be keeping classrooms open, as it takes advantage of controversial new legislation introduced in the dying days of Boris Johnson’s premiership in July.

In a letter to parents dated August 31, Louise Fisk, the school’s Headteacher, wrote: “It is with much regret that I must inform you that the NEU have announced a series of further strike days planned for September and October. “We will, however, be open to all classes and all pupils on these strike days as a change in legislation in July means that schools can now use agency/temporary workers to cover the work of striking employees. This change in legislation allows the school to manage the impact of the strike days more effectively and, more importantly, we can fully continue with the educational service.”

The National Education Union ( NEU), which says lowly-paid support staff are facing losing money at a time of rampant inflation, has tabled 18 days of strike action this half-term.

The school’s latest move has been described as a “disgrace” by the NEU. Members have been on strike over what it says are cuts which will have “disastrous” consequences for employees, to save what it says is a maximum of £40,000, within a five-school academy trust which reported spending nearly £1.5m on senior staff in 2020-21.  Drapers’ Multi-Academy Trust also spent £110-£120,000 in salary alone on its most highly paid person in 2020-21. The chief executive, Bushra Nasir.

Under the restructuring plans, several teaching assistants (TA) at the school are to have their roles downgraded, while their hours are also being cut, the latter of course also translating into a drop in pay. A typical TA at the school earns £15,000 a year but stands to lose £100 a month.  A document setting out the plans and dating from February shows five teaching assistant posts being downgraded from grade 4 to grade 3, and one further post being deleted completely. Five TA posts were proposed to have their hours cut, from 30 hours or more to 27.5. Since the union action started, however, the trust has agreed to postpone the introduction of the reduction in grades for two years, until September 2024.

The two sides met at the conciliation service ACAS in July, with the trust making what Ms Fisk told parents in her letter was a generous offer to the union. The NEU said that, having not offered pay protection before then, the trust had then conceded that staff should be offered compensation for their hours being cut, with a £1,000 one-off payment, before tax and National Insurance. But the union is sticking to its call for staff to be allowed to work their existing hours.   Michael Gavan, regional officer for the NEU, said: “In these days of rampant inflation, support staff at Drapers’ Pyrgo Primary aren’t being offered an inadequate pay rise – what they are being subjected to is an actual pay cut in cash and real terms. Faced with this shocking reduction in pay our members were left with no other alternative than strike action.  “For Drapers to now draft in agency strike breakers is a disgrace. This is an employer which appears to have no conscience or social responsibility.”

Staff themselves have been making their feelings clear. In a letter handed out at the school gates during strikes last term, and signed “striking support staff”, the employees wrote to parents that they were “deeply concerned about your children’s education and welfare”, warning of cuts to safeguarding and speech and language roles. They added: “Drapers Mat have decided that cutting hours and pay grades is acceptable even though we will be doing the same job or even taking on more responsibility.” They also said: “The top 12 employees of the MAT earn between £800,000 and £1,000,000 per year. In cutting support staff wages it is yet again the lowest paid having less to live on.” The trust’s latest-published accounts, for 2020-21, list Drapers’ payments to its “key management personnel” – which seems to be 12 people including Ms Nasir, another director and the schools’ principals and vice-principals – as even higher, at £1.49m*.

Frances O’Grady, the TUC’s general secretary, stated, the right to strike was a “fundamental freedom” but that the Conservative government was “attacking it at every opportunity”. MPs had voted through the law despite the objections of the lobby group for agency businesses, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.  The new Employment Agencies and Employment Business (Amendment) Regulations 2022, which came into force on July 22nd, removed the restriction on providing agency workers to cover the work of staff on strike.

The next strike at by NEU support staff members at Drapers PyrgoPrimary School will take place on from 7am until 8.30pm on Tuesday27th, Wednesday 28th and Thursday 29th September.  

Please join the picket line at Drapers Pyrgo Primary School Settle Road Harold Hill, RM3 9RT (Regular trains run to Romford from Liverpool Street and Stratford to Romford. The No. 174 bus leaves from Romford Station to Settle Road, Harold Hill every 10 minutes).  

Messages of support can be sent to JOHN DELANEY District Secretary Havering NEU at JOHN.DELANEY@neu.org.uk Michael Gavin London Regional Officer NEU   Michael.Gavin@neu.org.uk