The Secretary of State for Education continues to work with Cabinet colleagues to seek a fair and reasonable resolution to the pay dispute with teachers. Teachers in England have rejected a pay offer from the Government that would have seen salaries rise by 4.5 per cent on average next year, alongside a one-off payment of £1,000 for this year. The offer was funded, including major new investment of over half a billion pounds, and helps tackle issues teachers are facing like workload. 

Members of the National Education Union (NEU) and the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) have voted to turn down the offer. Instead, the NEU will hold two more strike days in the summer term, causing further disruption for students and parents. The unions also rejected an offer to create a new taskforce to help reduce workload by an average of five hours a week for teachers and leaders. The decision is disappointing and means less money for teachers this year and possible disruption to students preparing for exams. Furthermore, it is extremely disappointing that the NEU are re-balloting for more strike action up until Christmas this year.

Teacher pay for next year will now go through an independent pay review process as usual. The School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) makes recommendations on the pay of teachers in England and reports to the Secretary of State for Education and the Prime Minister. As is normal, the STRB will look only at pay for next year, meaning teachers will not receive a one-off payment for this year (2022 to 2023).

In the Autumn Statement 2022, the Chancellor confirmed that schools in England will receive an additional £2 billion of funding next year and the year after. This will be the highest real terms spending on schools in history, totalling £58.8 billion by 2024/25.

After two years of disrupted education due to the Covid-19 pandemic, every single day spent in school with experienced teachers who know their students makes a difference to a child’s development. The Government’s priority will always be to keep schools open and to keep children in the classroom, and the Department for Education has issued guidance to school leaders to help with this process.