One of the joint general secretaries of the NEU teaching union has warned that rejecting the 6.5 per cent pay award for teachers and school leaders would be a “very risky course of action”.
Kevin Courtney also said that a “radical intensification” of action could fail to shift the government’s position and could weaken parental support for the cause.
Speaking to NEU members in a webinar this evening, joint general secretaries Dr Mary Bousted and Mr Courtney strongly urged members to accept the government’s latest offer on teacher and leader pay.
Under the terms of the offer announced by the Department for Education last week, teachers would receive a 6.5 per cent pay rise from September 2023.
All four education unions currently in dispute with the government over pay - the NASUWT and NEU teaching unions, the NAHT school leaders’ union and the Association of School and College Leaders - have said they will recommend that members accept the pay award.
The NEU is the only education union that carried out strike action for the dispute this year.
“Mary and I both want to urge you that ‘accept’ is the right option,” Mr Courtney said today.
He told members: “There is the alternative of rejecting the offer. But if you do this, we think it’s really important that you understand that [you] would be committing yourself and your colleagues to a radical intensification of industrial action in the autumn term.
“We think that nothing less would shift the government and even that radical intensification might not shift the government. We think that is a very risky course of action.”
Mr Courtney added that he was “very worried” about the prospect of “huge amounts of industrial action”, adding that he and Dr Bousted believed many members would not take the strike action, having received the 6.5 per cent rise.
He added that as a result, the action could get weaker, and “we’re worried parental support could drop off if the action intensifies”.
He urged members to “bank” the deal and “move on with the campaigns and think about action again in the future years”.
Mr Courtney also said he thought there was “a really good chance of getting a better deal” for the 2024-25 pay award and added that the union would strike again if necessary.
NTP underspends to help fund pay award
The DfE also held a webinar for teachers and leaders this afternoon, to explain the pay award and the resulting funding.
Last week, the government said that 3 per cent of the 6.5 per cent pay award will be met with additional funding, while schools will be expected to meet the rest of the rise (3.5 per cent) through existing budgets.
Speaking on Sky News on Friday, education secretary Gillian Keegan confirmed that the Treasury had given the DfE “flexibility” to use anticipated underspends within the department “and move them into teacher pay”.
She added that these underspends happen when programmes do not use all of the money planned. Usually, this money will then return to the Treasury.
Today, the DfE confirmed that some of these underspends will come from the National Tutoring Programme (NTP), where demand has been lower than had been anticipated in the current academic year.
Underspends have also been identified in allocations for 16-19 enrolments.
Keegan promises to ‘streamline’ STRB process
Ms Keegan also said that the department was looking to “streamline” the independent pay review body process that helps set teacher pay.
Each year, the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) invites evidence from unions, the government and other interested parties before submitting a final report to the DfE setting out recommendations on teacher pay for the following academic year.
Ms Keegan said that the department understands that “the timing of the STRB process and the budgeting process is...not ideal”.
“As someone who’s done loads of budgets, I can understand and feel your pain,” she said. “So we will also look to streamline that process so you get the information early.”
Not all schools will get 3 per cent
The DfE said last week that extra funding provided to schools will provide the 3 per cent above the 3.5 per cent that it is expected schools budgeted for.
However, the DfE admitted today that “there will be some schools where costs are a little higher than average, or the funding increases are lower than average schools”.
Tom Goldman, deputy director of the DfE’s funding policy, told attendees: “Of course, there’ll be some schools where costs are a little higher than average, or the funding increases are lower than average schools that perhaps have falling numbers overall, or falling numbers of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.
“In exceptional circumstances, if those pressures are particularly challenging and a school can’t manage within its budget…academies can and should approach the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) to discuss what additional support they might need, while maintained schools [should] approach their local authorities.”
