Many schools in the North East were shut or partially closed on Wednesday as teachers went on strike again in a dispute over pay.
Members of the National Education Union (NEU) formed picket lines outside schools and sixth-form colleges across the region as they campaigned for better pay and funding. Another day of action has been planned for Friday, with a rally due to be held in Durham Market Place.
The strike on Wednesday marked the seventh day of action by NEU teacher members since February. Education union leaders have warned that further walkouts in the autumn term are likely if the ongoing pay dispute remains unresolved.
Read More: List of North East schools closed on Wednesday July 5 due to teachers' strike
The Government offered teachers a £1,000 one-off payment for the current school year (2022/23) and an average 4.5% rise for staff next year after intensive talks with unions earlier this year. But all four education unions involved in the dispute rejected the offer and the decision on teachers' pay in England for next year has been passed to the independent School Teachers' Review Body (STRB).
Among those on strike on Wednesday was Sean McGregor, history teacher at Marden Bridge Middle School in Whitley Bay. He said: "The reason we are striking today is because of the lack of funding and the way I think this current Government is treating education with contempt. Over the last 13 years of the Tories in power, we have seen 20% real term pay cuts for teachers.
"But more important than that, it's about the funding cuts. The pay offer that they offered earlier in the year, where it was the 4.5% increase completely unfunded, well that's going to have a huge impact on children because it means school budgets are going to be cut. It means we are going to see less resources and ultimately damaging children's futures and damaging their education.
"We are not striking just for us. We are striking because we believe in what we do and we believe in enabling children to have the best future possible."
NEU general secretary-elect Daniel Kebede said teachers were taking up second jobs amid the cost-of-living crisis. He said: "Teachers are taking up second jobs to pay the mortgage, pay rent and to meet the cost of living. A friend was in an Uber yesterday and their Uber driver was a full-time teacher and a part-time Uber driver.
"The fact is teaching is not providing a decent standard of living anymore. We have a crisis in recruitment retention, we have schools struggling to retain teachers and recruit new teachers. We now have a million children taught in classes of over 31."
The NEU - alongside the NASUWT teaching union, the NAHT school leaders' union and the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) - are currently balloting their members in England to take action in the autumn. 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 incredible work and commitment.
"Thousands of schools received significant additional funding as part of the extra £2 billion of investment we are providing both this year and next. As a result, school funding will be at its highest level in history next year, as measured by the IFS (Institute for Fiscal Studies)."
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