School leaders turn to union over ‘real fear’ they will lose homes

Union boss reveals members’ deep concerns over cost of living and staff relying on food banks
3rd October 2022, 8:31pm

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School leaders turn to union over ‘real fear’ they will lose homes

https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/general/school-leaders-turn-union-over-real-fear-they-will-lose-homes
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A school leaders’ union is taking the unprecedented step of having to give advice to members who are worried about losing their homes due to the economic climate.

Speaking at the Conservative Party conference today, Paul Whiteman, of the NAHT union said school leaders had told the organisation that rising mortgage rates were creating a “real fear” for members.

He also said that leaders were concerned about food bank use among school staff.

At the event, which was jointly hosted by the NEU teaching union, NAHT school leaders’ union, and the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), attendees were also told that schools were in a “perfect storm” of financial pressure that would “only get worse”.

Mr Whiteman said that the “erosion” of pay for school staff over time had meant that education was missing recruitment targets for graduates, and losing support staff to supermarkets.

Talking further about the financial pressure facing members, he added: “I’m aware that now, for the first time, we are giving advice to some of our members that are in real fear of losing their homes as mortgage rates begin to increase”.

“Shouting ‘crisis’ is not cutting through,” he said. “The double whammy of inadequate and unfunded pay rises has meant that there’s a recruitment and retention crisis now,” he added.

Others on the panel echoed Mr Whiteman’s message. Evelyn Forde, ASCL president and headteacher at Copthall school in north London, said that recruiting staff had become increasingly difficult because of the pay and conditions facing teachers.

“I’m getting to the point where I have to consider whether I can run a geography class. Try getting a head of geography for love nor money,” she said.

Addressing the funding crisis facing schools, she added: “We are not heading for a perfect storm, we are in a perfect storm. It’s only going to get worse.”

Schools have been reporting financial difficulties for several months now, and have stressed how this is impacting their staff, recruitment and retention.

Earlier this year, we reported that school leaders were struggling to fill support staff vacancies, while another teaching union - the NASUWT - has told of staff having to use food banks and other charitable assistance.

The education secretary announced the teachers’ pay award at the end of July, which proposed pay rises between 8.9 per cent and 5 per cent, but no extra funding was given to cover this pay rise.

This was followed by a higher-than-expected pay offer from the employers’ representatives for local government, which offered a pay rise to support staff of between 10.5 per cent and 4.04 per cent.

Schools have also raised an array of other cost pressures, including rising energy bills and catering costs.

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