Weekly round-up: Strike threat and teacher industrial action

Catch up on all your must-read Tes news and analysis here:

• Nearly half of schools could face industrial action from next week 
  More than four in 10 schools in England could face industrial action from teachers who are members of the NASUWT union from Monday 18 September as part of a long-running dispute over workload and working hours.
   
• Support staff at thousands of schools to vote on strikes 
  Support staff are set to vote on strike action from this week after their union rejected a pay offer for 2023-24.
   
• ‘Nearly half’ of primaries and special schools have in-year deficits 
  Almost half of the primary and special schools in England say they had or are expecting a deficit for the past academic year, new research shows.
   
• Small schools are on the brink - are MATs the answer? 
  Small schools with fewer than 100 pupils are least likely to be in a multi-academy trust - but are they the very schools most in need of academy support? Dan Worth investigates.
   
• D&T teachers “rummage in skips” for materials, MPs told 
  It is not unusual for design and technology teachers to “rummage through skips” for teaching materials because schools are short of money, an MPs’ inquiry into teacher recruitment problems was told this week.
   
• DfE set to refresh teacher recruitment strategy amid crisis
  The government is poised to launch a refresh of its teacher recruitment and retention strategy amid signs that the “catastrophic” teacher supply crisis is deepening, Tes can reveal.
   
• Secondary ITT recruitment “to fall short of target” again 
  School staff union leaders have warned of a “vicious cycle” of under-recruitment as new statistics show that the government is set to miss its recruitment target for secondary trainee teachers again this year.
   
• Competitive teacher pay is ‘crucial’, warns OECD 
  Secondary teachers’ pay in England has fallen in real terms since 2015 - but an attractive salary is vital for recruitment, says a new report from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
   
• Teachers ‘at risk of quitting’ after moving school 
  Moving school can be a “low point” for teachers and lead them to consider leaving the profession, a study shows.
   
• KS2 Sats 2023: five new findings 
  New Department for Education figures reveal how different groups of pupils performed in this year’s key stage 2 Sats, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with SEND.
   
• Poorer pupils get seven months’ progress boost from language scheme 
  A national evaluation of the Nuffield Early Language Intervention programme for Reception pupils shows that it can help to close the disadvantage-related attainment gap.
   
• RAAC: Schools need ‘urgent clarity’ over funding as costs mount
  The government is under increasing pressure to provide “clarity” on funding for dealing with potentially hazardous RAAC concrete, with some schools already having spent thousands to make buildings safe, Tes has learned.