Three in five parents and guardians support teachers taking strike action, a poll suggests. But 43% of parents and guardians are worried about their children catching up on schoolwork missed because of walkouts, according to research by Ipsos.
The findings come as teachers will strike again in parts of England and across Wales on Thursday, causing further disruption to families. The poll suggests that 60% of parents and carers back teachers going on strike, compared to 48% of people across the UK who support the walkouts.
Ipsos questioned 2,187 adults from the UK between February 24 and February 26 this year. The greatest level of concern among parents is school funding rather than strikes, Ipsos found. The poll suggests 60% of parents and guardians are worried about their children’s education because not enough money is spent on school or teachers.
Keiran Pedley, research director at Ipsos, said: “When we look at public support for potential strike action, we tend to find more sympathy for teachers than many other professions and that is reflected in this data too. Meanwhile, whilst many parents and guardians are concerned about the potential impact strikes might have on their child’s education, they are typically more concerned about the level of funding schools receive more generally.”
Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said: “While no teacher wants to be on strike action we are grateful for the support of parents, and do not take it for granted. Many understand first-hand the issues faced by schools and colleges and their children’s teachers. They need no persuasion that there is disruption every day of the school year, thanks to the Government’s poor decision-making and short-sighted policies on education.
“We urge Gillian Keegan to start negotiating with the profession to ensure we have a resolution for the sake of teachers and children’s education. The Government’s continued stonewalling of talks will not improve their standing among parents and the general public. We need to see a substantive offer that will address the issues which are eroding this essential public service.”
