Parents, carers and members of the National Education Union (NEU) have organised two demonstrations calling for their schools to be returned to democratic County Council control and for the Regional Director for Education, Dame Kate Dethridge to consult meaningfully with stakeholders over the future proprietors of their schools, commit to fair school funding, educators’ pay and conditions and union recognition.
UBAT who operate 14 schools across East and West Susses are being disbanded following revelations, that came to light last summer, and which led to industrial action by NEU members, over the way in which the Trust syphoned funding from school budgets to fund executive pay and central academy functions.
The NEU have made representations to Hastings and Rye MP Helena Dollimore, to ask the Secretary of State for Education to return the schools to local authority control. They have also written to the Regional Director for Education, demanding urgent assurances over members pay and conditions, school funding and union recognition. Disappointingly, such assurances have not been provided by the unelected Regional Director for Education, Dame Dethridge.
Details of the two demonstrations, both on Saturday 22nd March are as follows:
- Hastings – 11am Wellington Place, TN34 1NY
- Burgess Hill – 3pm Burgess Hill Academy, Station Rd, Burgess Hill RH15 9EA
Commenting on the situation, Phil Clarke, Regional Secretary, said:
‘The Academy system has failed the children of Hastings and West Sussex. Why are more academy trusts now being proposed as an answer? Academy trusts have a scandalous record of excessive executive pay, paid for out of struggling school budgets. It is time for the Labour Government to bring in urgent legislation to allow schools to be returned to local council control’
‘The Regional Director for Education must commit to meaningful consultation with educators, parents and the local community over who will be running UBAT schools in future and to cast-iron guarantees on educators’ pay, conditions and the right to union recognition’
