BREAKING: Woodfield Special school strikes paused while negotiations take place

 The NEU has paused the long-running strikes at Woodfield Special School in Kingsbury as the dispute goes to ACAS. The strike pause is in exchange for the academy trust  pausing the staffing restructure while negotiations take  place.

Byron Court Primary staff , parents and children, take their campaign to Parliament and Department for Education in Election Week - watch out for their Big Red Bus

 From Brent National Education Union

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NEU members at Byron Court Primary School, who have already taken 10 days of strike action are due strike for the three days running up to the General Election in a fight to save their local community school from a takeover by the huge Harris Federation chain of academies, a company whose CEO donated to Tory funds.  Strikes are continuing on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week.

 

Campaigners will take to Parliament Square and the DfE on 2^nd July in a big red vintage routemaster bus to gain publicity to ask the incoming education minister to overturn their “academy order”.

 

The school’s forced “academy order” follows an intimidating Ofsted inspection which, for staff, had parallels with the experience of Ruth Perry and resulted in the same “inadequate” one word judgement. They are hoping for a new Labour government, who have promised to get rid of Ofsted one word judgements, to intervene and revoke the academy order to keep this as a community school.

 

118 campaigners wrote to the DfE prior to the decision being taken, to oppose the move, but a recent FOI request for information on how this was presented, has been snubbed. There have been two complaints against Ofsted but so far Ofsted have not investigated the process that took place.

 

NEU members, parents, councillors and the local community have been turning out to support picket lines and prtotests at the school, Brent Civic Centre and Central London. They have been supported by Barry Gardiner.

Jenny Cooper of the NEU national executive has stated:

 

The “SAVE BYRON COURT” campaign has found itself on the frontline of defence against privatisation, since the election was announced, and school staff around the country are watching to see what the next government will do. We do not want this to be the last community school to be given to private hands- we want it to be the last time this battle has to be fought.

Teachers organise to reject 'half-funded' 6.5% pay offer - this is why

 Initial reaction in Brent appears to challenge yesterday's media assumptions that the teachers' dispute is over.  Claims that the government has funded the increase were challenged. Schools will have to find 3% of the 6.5% from their budgets and the assumption that they have the money to have budgeted for 3.5% already is doubtful, when many Brent schools are heading for a deficit budget.

Schools are already restructuring staff and negotiating redundancies, particularly among support staff.

The last round of strikes emphasised the need for the increase to be 'fully-funded' and there is disappointment that this is not the case. There are vague assurances that there will be a 'hardship fund' for schools that cannot afford to pay the increase but no firm details.

Furthermore, there is concern that the Government has not put forward any longer term plans on making up the loss, in real terms, of the loss in teachers' earnings. It is this loss that had led (along with workload and Ofsted pressures) to the recruitment and retention crisis in our schools.

An 'Educators Say No to 6.5%' campaign has been rapidly organised and has received support from many Brent NEU members.

Community support for St Mungos strikers on the picket line in Willesden

 

 

Local activists and Brent TUC  joined St Mungos strikers on the picket line in Willesden this morning to show solidarity with their struggle for a decent pay rise to address  the 25%  real terms reduction  in their wages and the erosion caused by inflation.

 

 Outside the St Mungos facility in Pound Lane

 

Like many charities St Mungos has left its roots to be more of a corporate enterprise with highly paid executives and low paid workers actually on the front line working with the homeless.  The changes, as with housing associations comes about as charities and the third sector are called upon to perform functions abandoned by the welfare state.

 

 

 

The support from the public for the strikers came over loud and clear as passing traffic tooted in solidarity.

That support will be demonstrated again when a Solidarity Rally, addressed by Dawn Butler, takes place at noon on Friday June 16th outside Brent Civic Centre in Wembley Park.

The Civic Centre is an appropriate venue as St Mungos gets the majority of its funding from local authorities, many London boroughs, including Brent. The strikers are keen that councils put pressure on the St Mungos management to negotiate a fair deal. Half the workforce of 1,600 are unionised and many taking part in strikes, leading to agency workers with little experience attempting to deliver the service for which the borough pays.

If the contract is failing to deliver there may be a case for councils to suspend their contracts.

 

NEU statement on talks with Government - 2 weeks of calm agreed

The Government and the education trade unions, Association of School and College Leaders, National Association of Head Teachers, NASUWT and National Education Union, have agreed to move into a period of intensive talks. The talks will focus on teacher pay, conditions and workload reduction.

In order for talks to begin and, we hope, reach a successful conclusion, the NEU has confirmed it will create a period of calm for two weeks during which time they have said no further strike dates will be announced. The Education Secretary and all the unions will meet today (Friday 17 March), beginning intensive talks, which will continue over the weekend.

Dawn Butler on Minimum Service Levels Bill: ' It is dishonest; it is an insult to trade unions, which are the aspirational vehicle of the working class; and it is an insult to Parliament and parliamentary procedures.'

This is the text of Dawn Butler's speech on the  'Strikes (Minimum Services Levels) Bill delivered yesterday in Parliament.

 

A lot of time is spent in courts in some countries arguing about minimum service level agreements. I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I am a proud trade unionist: I worked for the GMB for more than a decade representing Members of Parliament, I am a member of Unite the union, and, after this debate, I might join a few more trade unions.

 

The Secretary of State took great joy in reading out how much hon. Members receive from trade unions, which is, as my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, Deptford (Vicky Foxcroft) said, the cleanest money in politics. I wonder if, when he returns to his place, he will let the House know how much Michael Green, Corinne Stockheath and Sebastian Fox have received in payments.

 

In the short time that I have, I will talk about the Bill. It is dishonest; it is an insult to trade unions, which are the aspirational vehicle of the working class; and it is an insult to Parliament and parliamentary procedures. A lot of time is spent in courts in some countries arguing about minimum service level agreements. I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I am a proud trade unionist: I worked for the GMB for more than a decade representing Members of Parliament, I am a member of Unite the union, and, after this debate, I might join a few more trade unions.

 

The Secretary of State took great joy in reading out how much hon. Members receive from trade unions, which is, as my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, Deptford (Vicky Foxcroft) said, the cleanest money in politics. I wonder if, when he returns to his place, he will let the House know how much Michael Green, Corinne Stockheath and Sebastian Fox have received in payments.

 

In the short time that I have, I will talk about the Bill. It is dishonest; it is an insult to trade unions, which are the aspirational vehicle of the working class; and it is an insult to Parliament and parliamentary procedures. Most of  the detail of the Bill is missing and the Government have said that they will add it later—that is not how we are supposed to do politics or make legislation. It contains wide, prospective Henry VIII powers, and as we saw during the pandemic, if we give the Government such powers, they abuse them—but they are putting them in legislation. It allows the Government to amend and revoke any future legislation passed in this Session, so what is the point of Parliament? No matter what we say or pass, the Government can turn around and say, “We want to change it,” or, “We want to revoke it.” That is against what every single Member of Parliament has been elected to do.

 

Ministers are trying to have power over Parliament—that is all the Bill is about—and to encourage employers to have power over workers. When I was a trade union official, it said on our office wall, “To make rich people work harder, they pay them more. To make poor people work harder, they try to pay them less.” Safety does not appear anywhere in the Bill. 

 

The House of Lords debated a report, “Democracy Denied?”, which said that we must rebalance power between Parliament and the Executive. The Government are asking Parliament to vote on a Bill that does not really exist, because there is no detail.

 

If the Government are serious about having minimum service levels, and if they are serious about negotiating, which nobody in the Government seems able to do, they should agree to compulsory arbitration or mediation to resolve disputes, but they are not interested in that. They are interested in trying to paint trade unions, which are the aspirational vehicle of the working class, in one light and themselves in another.

 

I say to the Government, however, that the public are not stupid and they see what the Government are doing by trying to take away their rights at every single level, including the right to protest and the right to vote. We see what the Government are doing and we will stand up and stop them at every opportunity.

 

Most of the detail of the Bill is missing and the Government have said that they will add it later—that is not how we are supposed to do politics or make legislation. It contains wide, prospective Henry VIII powers, and as we saw during the pandemic, if we give the Government such powers, they abuse them—but they are putting them in legislation. It allows the Government to amend and revoke any future legislation passed in this Session, so what is the point of Parliament? No matter what we say or pass, the Government can turn around and say, “We want to change it,” or, “We want to revoke it.” That is against what every single Member of Parliament has been elected to do.

 

Ministers are trying to have power over Parliament—that is all the Bill is about—and to encourage employers to have power over workers. When I was a trade union official, it said on our office wall, “To make rich people work harder, they pay them more. To make poor people work harder, they try to pay them less.” Safety does not appear anywhere in the Bill.

 

The House of Lords debated a report, “Democracy Denied?”, which said that we must rebalance power between Parliament and the Executive. The Government are asking Parliament to vote on a Bill that does not really exist, because there is no detail.

 

If the Government are serious about having minimum service levels, and if they are serious about negotiating, which nobody in the Government seems able to do, they should agree to compulsory arbitration or mediation to resolve disputes, but they are not interested in that. They are interested in trying to paint trade unions, which are the aspirational vehicle of the working class, in one light and themselves in another.

 

I say to the Government, however, that the public are not stupid and they see what the Government are doing by trying to take away their rights at every single level, including the right to protest and the right to vote. We see what the Government are doing and we will stand up and stop them at every opportunity.

 

STRIKES: Solidarity actions and locations this week - from information provided by Brent TUC

From Brent Trades Council

 

LOCATIONS

TOMORROW

 

 

TFL information on London travel during upcoming strikes

 

Between Tuesday 13 December 2022 and Sunday 8 January 2023, there will be national rail strike action.  Over the Christmas and New Year period, there will also be service changes and planned works. This will affect some services but most TfL services, including most of the Tube, will run during this time. If travelling during this period, plan ahead, check before you travel and leave more time for your journey. Our Journey Planner and TfL Go app can help you plan your journey as required.  National rail strike action Elizabeth line services will be disrupted during national rail strike action on the following days: Tuesday 13, Wednesday 14, Friday 16 and Saturday 17 December 2022 Tuesday 3, Wednesday 4, Friday 6 and Saturday 7 January 2023 The Elizabeth line will operate in three sections and run a reduced service each strike day: Liverpool Street (national rail platforms) and Shenfield between 07:30 and 18:30 only Paddington and Abbey Wood all day Paddington (national rail platforms) and Heathrow Terminal 4/Reading between 07:30 and 18:30 only A good service is expected by late morning on Thursday 15 and Sunday 18 December 2022, and on Thursday 5 and Sunday 8 January 2023.  There will also be national rail strike action between Saturday 24 and Tuesday 27 December. More details on travelling over the festive period are below. Visit our strike page for more information.

Brent Fights Back - organising meeting November 30th 7pm Black Music Co-op, Willesden

 

Another Coldplay car park in Fryent Country Park this evening

 

In a comment on my previous post about Brent Council undermining the Aslef and RMT strikes by providing a car park in a Fryent Country Park field, a reader asked about safety and security and who was paying for it. LINK

There are generators with some lighting stands  and a number of stewards. I saw about eight stewards scattered around the area when I visited at 5pm today.  As you can see there is also a portacabin, portaloos and rather a lot of temporary fencing.  There is signage in the field and along the walking route to Wembley Stadium.

It does not look like a temporary operation.

I presume all that is financed from the £20 car parking fee.

Some early arrivals went off to the stadium without raincoats.  They might get very wet if there is heavy rain tonight and it will seem quite a long walk back.

Tory Barnet and Labour Brent outsourcing: similarities and differences as Barnet Unison votes to strike

Barnet Tory  'Easy Council' is facing industrial action over its outsourcing of services to private companies. 87% of Unison council workers have voted for strike action over the five commissioning projects that were agreed at the March 5th Full Council meeting. 

The proposals would mean outsourcing the majority of the Council workforce into one of five 'alternative delivery models':

1. Education & Skills and School Meals services

2. Library Service

3. Early Years: Children’s Centres

4. Adult Social Care

5. Street Scene Services

In a press release Unison said the Education & Skills and School Meals services is already in Competitive Dialogue discussions with the following contractors:

· Capita Business Services Ltd

· EC Harris LLP

· Mott MacDonald Ltd, trading as Cambridge Education

Looking at Capita’s track record LINK   in bidding and winning contracts it is highly likely they will win this contract making it the third big contract they will have won with Barnet Council.

Unison Branch Secretary John Burgess said:

The vote was never in doubt. The workforce in Barnet is amazing and resilient. The vote confirms that our members have had enough of the ideological obsession with outsourcing. The Council does not value the workforce which can be seen when unpaid overtime and long hours are never recognised when putting together bids for outsourcing projects. The fact that the Council refuses to run in-house comparators has made it clear to our members that their future employment with the Council is threatened.

So where does this leave Brent Labour 'Increasingly uneasy' Council and their own 'alternative  models'? Using the Brent equivalents of the five Barnet services:

1. Brent Council's School Improvement Service has been run down and provides a core service only with many functions handed over to the Brent Schools Partnership. and schools buying in other services from a variety of providers,  School meals have been out-sourced for a long time. In addition the Brent Cabinet on April 14th will be deciding on future provision of Additional Resources Provision and English as an Additional Language  to pupils through a variety of contracts with Academies and Independent schools LINK
2. Brent Council proposed transferring the management  of the library services to an established trust or a new model with similar features.
3. Early Years: Children's Centres - Brent Council has agreed to a partnership arrangement with  the voluntary sector or charities.
4. Adult Social Care: There is a proposal going forward to the Brent Cabinet on April 14th for Extra Care to be provided via Direct Payments and a contract with Plexus/Mears LINK 
5. Street Scene Services (parks refuse etc) Brent has already outsourced street cleaning, recycling, waste collection, parks maintenance, and cemeteries to a sole contractor, Veolia. The Cabinet will also be discussing extending the contract with Gristwood and Toms for Arboricultural  services (dealing with trees beyond what Veolia do as part of the parks maintenance contract).

An additional item at the April 14th Brent Cabinet is a proposal to pay Penoyre and Prasad LLP £831,250  for work on a hybrid planning application for the Peel Site on the South Kilburn estate. LINK

I will leave readers to judge the similarities and differences between the approaches of the two council - one Conservative and the other Labour.  You may also want to consider why Unison's reaction appears to be different in the two councils and whether as a result of the Coalition's cuts to local government that outsourcing is inevitable...

Brent Green Party backs today's public sector strike

A message to all the public sector unions striking today

On behalf of the Green Party of England and Wales, we would like to express our solidarity with you in your struggle for decent, secure work and fair pay and working conditions.

We believe that public sector workers provide excellent and vital service to our country, and that our public services represent a very significant part of the true wealth of this nation.

The public sector in the UK has, for decades, been systematically attacked. Workers are bearing the brunt of this, and are being expected to pay the price for an economic crisis not of their making.

We recognise that going on strike is the option of last resort, and that the decisions to do so have not been taken lightly. We sincerely hope that this co-ordinated action succeeds in defending your jobs, pay, and working conditions.

With very best wishes,

Brent Green Party

Vital Education Question Time Meeting in New Year

Why are teachers striking? Is OFSTED a political tool? Do we need SATs? Why is there a shortage of school places? Are standards falling in our schools?

If you would like to propose questions for the panel to consider please use #edqtime @NCE2014

7pm, WEDNESDAY

22nd JANUARY 2014

CHAIR: Adrian Chiles ITV presenter and local parent

PANEL: Michael Rosen Children’s author and broadcaster 

Christine Blower National Union of Teachers General Secretary

Julian Bell Leader of Ealing Council

Government and local campaign speakers are invited

Everyone is welcome especially parents, governors and students

There is no charge for the event but please register for tickets at

 http://educationquestiontime.ticketsource.co.uk

Press contact: 07958 542872  Nickgrant2512@mac.com

Venue: St. Paul’s Church, Queen Caroline Street, Hammersmith, W6 9PJ 

Nearest tube: Hammersmith

Teachers Vote Overwhelmingly for a Campaign of Strikes on Pensions

Teachers in England and Wales have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action against government plans to cut their pensions.

Ballot results released this afternoon for the Association of Teachers and Lecturers and the National Union of Teachers reflect a high level of anger and resistance.

83% of the ATL voted for a campaign of strikes and the NUT was even higher at 92%/

This is especially significant for the ATL as this is its first ever national strike ballot.

Together with the NUT this result represents the majority of school teachers in England and Wales, in both the state maintained and independent sectors.

Both organisations will now consider these results at meetings in the next two days.

NUT National Executive Member Nick Grant said:

Unless the government makes an immediate and fundamental reversal of its plans to make us pay more, and work longer to get less pension in retirement, strike action will start with one day's stoppage on 30 June.

We also expect colleagues in the University and College Union and the PCS civil servants to join us on strike that day."

We call on everyone who is angry about the unjustified attacks on public services and its workforce to join us on the day at a march and rally from Lincolns Inn Fields, Holborn at 11.30am to go via Whitehall to Westminster for a rally.

This is a fight for the future of properly funded and accountable public services. And it is a fight which is only just beginning