Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she plans to take to help pupils affected by industrial action in schools catch up with missed learning and development that has been delayed as a result of that action.

It is disappointing that the National Education Union (NEU) proceeded with strike action on 1 February 2023. Many parents and pupils will have faced disruption, but the Department is hugely grateful to head teachers, teachers and support staff who continued to work, ensuring over 90% of schools remained open to some or all pupils.

The Department knows that the best place for pupils to be for their education, physical and mental health is in schools with their friends and teachers.

The Department is engaged in ongoing, constructive talks with unions on a range of issues, including those around pay, workload, recruitment and retention.

In addition to engaging with unions, the Department has taken steps to mitigate the effects of any disruptive strike action on pupils’ education and wellbeing. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, wrote to every school in early January setting out the additional funding each school in England would receive following the £2 billion of additional funding announced for schools, both this year and next, in the Autumn Statement. This additional funding will support schools with increased costs and was a request from unions, which the Government delivered. The Secretary of State also wrote to union leaders on 27 January, asking the NEU to encourage their members to inform their head teachers if they intended to strike, in order to support schools in ensuring as many pupils are in school on strike days. The Department is clear that schools should remain open for as many pupils as possible.

In the Department’s guidance on handling strike action in schools, the Department has confirmed that if a head teacher needed to restrict attendance as a last resort, they should prioritise school places for vulnerable children, children of critical workers and pupils who are due to take public examinations and other formal assessments. Head teachers have also been asked to do all they can to ensure children continue to have access to education on strike days, including through online teaching. The Department has also provided advice to schools through bulletins, and to parents through the Department’s Education Hub.

The Department has made almost £5 billion available to support pupils’ education recovery from the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department is funding what it knows works, such as teacher training and evidence-based support, including tutoring and extra education opportunities.