Nearly 70 staff members at one of Liverpool’s most prestigious schools will walk out on strike next month.
The National Education Union has announced a significant trade dispute at The Blue Coat School in Wavertree, one of the city’s most successful and well-known schools.
Having conducted a ballot of staff, the union confirmed that nearly 70 staff members will take strike action, starting on Tuesday May 14. An additional five days of action are scheduled to take place throughout May and June.
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The union said that members voted with a turnout of 91%, registering an ‘overwhelming’ 82% of the votes going in favour of industrial action.
The NEU says the strike is being held over staff concerns including an “unmanageable workload and unsatisfactory arrangements for the allocation of work,” as well as “Ineffective school mechanisms for negotiation and consultation.”
Safety concerns have also been raised regarding the state of the building and equipment as well as issues with “management cultures.”
Bora Oktas, Regional Officer of the NEU said: “The employer has been playing a dangerous game with our members since the start of this dispute in February. Their misleading tactics have not only affected staff but also parents and the local community.”
“The school management and trustees board have lost the trust and confidence of NEU members. Despite receiving taxpayer funds, they exhibit a total disregard for transparency and accountability.”
Peter Middleman, Regional Secretary of the NEU, added: “Students and their parents ought to be concerned that a leadership team which is costing an additional £250k in salaries now compared to last year – almost £1m in total – has demonstrated a gratuitous disinterest in resolving this dispute or examining their own collective weaknesses. What many consider to be a flagship school for the city is having its reputation further tarnished and our members realise that their line-in-the-sand defence of standards is something local communities will support them in.”
News of the strike action comes after a turbulent few years for the prestigious school.
Last year the ECHO revealed that former assistant headteacher at the school Nick Barends had been sacked following an investigation into his conduct. The sacking came 13 years after Mr Barends was dismissed over an allegedly inappropriate relationship with a student – before he was reinstated by a panel of governors and continued teaching at the school.
Earlier in 2023 we revealed that Mr Barends had been suspended by the school over an ‘historic’ allegation from over a decade ago that was separate to the one he was previously suspended for. The school carried out its own investigation and confirmed in July that Mr Barends’ employment had been terminated. A separate investigation is being carried out by the Teacher Regulation Authority.
Earlier this year, we revealed that the school’s current headteacher Scilla Yates would be stepping back from her role with an investigation into her conduct now taking place.
The announcement came just days after The Teacher Regulation Agency announced it would be carrying out a formal investigation into Mrs Yates’ own conduct. The Blue Coat insists the decision to step back and begin preparations for her retirement was made long before she or the school was aware of any investigation and is entirely unrelated.
In 2023 The Blue Coat was named Sunday Times North West Secondary School of the Year.
The school has been contacted for a response.
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Robert Johnson is a UK-based business writer specializing in finance and entrepreneurship. With an eye for market trends and a keen interest in the corporate world, he offers readers valuable insights into business developments.
