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Teachers' strike: Pickets at Senedd and schools in second walkout

BBC Striking teachers outside Senedd in CardiffBBC
The NEU, whose members were picketing outside the Senedd on Thursday, says no progress has been made in talks with the Welsh government

Thousands of pupils are staying at home as members of a teaching union in Wales picket the Senedd and schools.

Action was suspended last month while the National Education Union (NEU) considered an improved package, which it then turned down.

The NEU said the offer was "not good enough" but the Welsh government insisted it was a "strong" deal.

Ministers offered an additional 1.5% pay increase on top of the 5% already promised this year.

They then pledged another 1.5% as a one-off payment, as well as bringing in measures to address the workload of teachers.

NEU officials then met and rejected the offer, saying strikes would go ahead on 2, 15 and 16 March.

It said the offer failed to address the cost of living crisis or the "damage" to pay since 2010.

The Welsh government responded by saying it was working within "challenging financial constraints".

Woman on the street
Penarth teacher Suzie Tyack says it is sad to see colleagues leave the profession over pay

"We believe an offer that is the equivalent of an 8% pay rise, with 6.5% consolidated, is a strong one in the context of a reducing Welsh government budget," a spokesman said.

"For teachers to be able to benefit from an additional backdated pay rise for 2022-23, an agreement will be needed by mid-March."

The first NEU walkout on 1 February saw about 40% of Wales' 1,500 schools closed and hundreds more only open to some year groups.

'Completely underfunded'

Stacey Boucher, a teacher in Ysgol y Deri special school in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, said two members of staff had left for better paid jobs since the last strike a month ago.

"It's a difficult job but it's a job people love to come to, and with the wages people are just leaving and it's really sad," she said.

Placard with spelling mistakes suggesting unless schools get funding people won't be able to spell
Spelling it out: Unions representing teachers say workload is another major issue in the dispute

Joining her on the picket line, another teacher, Suzie Tyack, said she was not striking for personal gain but for better funding for schools and extra money for support staff.

"We've had no offer for support staff and they are completely underfunded in our system," she added.

At bilingual school Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy in Llanrwst, Conwy county, the doors will be open for pupils in Year 7, 12 and 13 only - the rest will be asked to stay at home because of staff shortages.

Head teacher Owain Gethin Davies said: "It will impact on pupils in years 10 to 13 who are losing important days to prepare for assessments and exams.

Teachers on strike holding up placards outside Ysgol y Deri school in Penarth
Staff picketing outside Ysgol y Deri in Penarth

"There isn't much time until the exams which obviously puts pressure on us as a school and there are concerns among parents."

With thousands of children asked to stay at home, some parents have had to secure additional children care for them to be able to go to work.

Blue Door out-of-school child care centre in Cardiff was welcoming more children affected by the strike.

Parent Rahela Dinu said the strike came at a financial cost to her family.

"I'm not happy at all," she said. "I get paid £50 a day as a cleaner and I have to spend £70 for my daughter to be here today."

Woman on the street
Rahela Dinu says the strike is costing her family an extra £70 for childcare costs

Another parent, Eleri Thomas, said she supports the teachers: "I used to be a teacher myself, so I completely understand why they're doing it.

"My son has an afternoon session usually here but today we've swapped to the morning and someone will pick him up later so it's worked out OK for us."

Woman on the street
Eleri Thomas says she supports the teachers as was able to find childcare cover for today's strike

But Paul Jones's son's nursery class was cancelled due to the strike, and he said: "He was due to be in wrap around out of school provision today anyway, so it's not too much of a problem for us today.

"Everyone's suffering at the moment. We're all in the same boat and I've got a lot of sympathy for teachers, like a lot of other industries at the moment."

Man on the street
Paul Jones says his son's nursery shut because of the strike but he still has "a lot of sympathy for teachers"

NEU Wales secretary David Evans told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast its members did not want to go on strike, but "no progress" was made in a meeting with the Welsh government on Tuesday.

There had been "positive moves" on the issue of workload, he added, but members were not backing down on pay demands.

"We go back to 2010 when the austerity measures kicked in," he said. "Teachers have been losing pay ever since then and support staff we estimate have probably lost up to 23 or 24% in pay."

Striking teachers outside Senedd in Cardiff
The NEU, whose members were picketing outside the Senedd on Thursday, says no progress has been made in talks with the Welsh government

The union has pledged pupils will not "be at a loss" if further strike days go ahead.

Members of the National Association of Headteachers are also continuing with action short of a strike, claiming more detail is needed on the deal offered by ministers.

It postponed a ballot to ask members for views on the revised offer, saying it wanted more clarity on school funding and reducing workload.

The Welsh government said it had written to unions with a "comprehensive offer on workload".