The majority of parents still back teachers going on strike today but opposition to the action has increased since February, new figures show.
Ipsos found that 52 per cent of parents now backed strikes, down from 60 per cent at the end of February, while opposition had increased from 17 per cent to 29 per cent.
Some 46 per cent of people generally supported the walkout, with 34 per cent opposed in a survey carried out between 20 and 21 April.
The figures were released as teachers in England were back on picket lines today, staging a fresh strike in a long-running dispute over pay.
Tens of thousands of members of the NEU teaching union walked out of schools and sixth-form colleges across England, with another strike planned on Tuesday (2 May).
The union said it believed the majority of schools are expected to either restrict access to pupils or fully close as a result of the strikes.
Many secondary schools in England are expected to prioritise Year 11 and Year 13 students during the strikes, as GCSE and A-level exams are weeks away.
The NEU has issued guidance, which says it will support arrangements during the strikes that “provide the minimum level of teaching staff needed” so that GCSE and A-level students can attend school for revision activities or exam practice.
Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU, said: “There are lots of places where arrangements are being made. In some places it’s members teaching, in others it is teachers setting work for the children on those days.”
He added: “Obviously, there is still disruption and we’ve fully acknowledged that and regret it, but we’ve taken those steps on the dispensations to try and assuage that concern as much as possible.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Any strike action is hugely damaging. We have made a fair and reasonable pay offer to teachers recognising their hard work and commitment.
“Thanks to the further £2 billion pounds we are investing in our schools, next year, school funding will be at its highest level in history.”
Picket lines were mounted outside schools across England and a number of rallies are due to be held.
The NEU is expected to announce three more strikes during the summer term after its members voted to reject the government’s pay offer.
The government offered teachers a £1,000 one-off payment for 2022-23 and an average 4.5 per cent pay rise for staff next year, following talks with the education unions.
Four education unions - the NEU, the NASUWT teaching union, the NAHT school leaders’ union and the Association of School and College Leaders - have rejected the pay offer.
