Parents will have noticed a picket line as they resumed the school run this morning
Hanham Woods Academy near Bristol(Image: Paul Gillis/Bristol Live)
A secondary school on the outskirts of Bristol had an eventful start to the academic year as teachers went on strike. Hanham Woods Academy welcomed pupils back today (September 3) following the summer holidays, but not everyone returned.
The school in Hanham, South Gloucestershire, confirmed that a “minority of staff” were on strike in a dispute with National Education Union members over school policy, budget decisions and workload.
Despite the disruption all year groups were still able to attend all classes as normal for the first day of term, following two INSET days. Bristol Live understands that the NASUWT union is currently also balloting for potential strike action at the same school.
In a post shared on Facebook, the Bristol branch of the union (NEU) said today’s action was being staged by the South Gloucestershire branch, whose members and supporters formed a picket line outside the school in the rain this morning. The post cited “cuts to teaching staff across the curriculum” as a result of ‘natural wastage redundancies’, which usually refers to staff not being replaced when they leave voluntarily through retirement or resignation.
The NEU also claimed that Key Stage 3 pupils “now only get 18 hours of art for a whole year”, labelling this a “disgrace”. The school is run by Cabot Learning Federation, a multi-academy trust that oversees more than 30 schools in Bristol and the wider region.
The union also alleges the trust recently spent thousands of pounds on a one-day conference, but “say they can’t afford teachers or a balanced curriculum”. Although all multi-academy trusts publish their financial accounts online in line with legal requirements, union members are calling for more transparency and demand that the school “opens the books”.
Members are threatening strike action again next week unless a resolution is found in the meantime. A spokesperson for Hanham Woods Academy said: “A minority of staff at Hanham Woods Academy today participated in National Education Union strikes as part of a dispute over their employment terms. These relate to changes to school policy, budget decisions and teacher workload.
“Extensive efforts have been made to meet the union demands and full agreement was reached on the majority of issues within 36 hours of the start of term. We believe resolution is near in the outstanding areas and are therefore surprised and disappointed that the NEU has chosen to take strike action, rather than to continue to engage in constructive discussion.
“Despite the NEU action, Hanham Woods Academy has maintained a full programme for all year groups who were due to attend school today, and continues to be a vibrant, diverse and dynamic learning environment for all students.”
The school had 856 pupils on roll during an Ofsted visit at the start of this year, when it was said to have maintained its previous rating of ‘good’. Bristol Live has contacted the NEU for further comment.