Teachers’ strike: Peterborough teachers feel 'undervalued' as staff continue to abandon the profession

Striking school teachers in Peterborough have said they feel “undervalued” and are “unable to provide children with an education they deserve” because of cuts to school budgets and a lack of Government funding.

Teachers who are members of the National Education Union (NEU) - the UK’s largest union with 450,000 members - went on strike over pay and conditions in Peterborough and the East of England on Wednesday (March 1).

It was the second of four strike dates planned by the NEU in February and March this year.

Speaking at picket lines outside schools in Peterborough, teachers said there are growing concerns about the education children are receiving in schools in the region.

It comes as teachers are reportedly walking away from the profession “in droves”.

One in four of all newly qualified teachers leave within three years of starting jobs, rising to a third of all teachers leaving within five years, according to the NEU.

‘Something has to give’

“I’ve been teaching for 35 years now and I feel so undervalued,” Kim McCamley, NEU representative and teacher at Gladstone Primary Academy, said.

“I don’t like striking, but this time we have got to do something about it because we’re losing so many teachers. It’s affecting the children, who we all care deeply for.

“We can’t provide them with as many resources as we would like for them to have a balanced education with a deep curriculum. We’re using our own money to prop up the budget.

“Something has to give. These children have one chance, and we’ve got to give them the best chance possible. That’s why we’re fighting - not just for us, but for the children.”

‘Our greatest concern is the children’

“Teachers are leaving the profession in droves,” Sue Forster, NEU representative and teacher at The Beeches Primary School, said.

“We’re training new teachers but we’re not managing to retain them because of the pay and conditions.

“Our greatest concern is the welfare of the children. I’ve been teaching for 32 years and I’ve seen the amount of money coming into the education system go down.

“We want any increase in our pay to come from the government budget and not school budgets, so that it’s not impacting the children.

“You’re not going to be able to get quality teachers into the profession if you’re not going to pay them a decent wage.

“I still see teaching as a vocation. It’s something I love to do - I love children, I love the school I work at, and I love education - but the job is getting harder and harder, and the monetary reward less and less.”

‘We’re all trying our best’

“Our schools are trying to do the best they can do with what they’ve got – but they’ve not got what they need,” Scott Beasley, NEU representative and teacher at The Beeches Primary School, said.

“The government are not valuing schools and we think we provide such an important service to the community.

"We’re all trying to do our best but we don’t have the resources we need.”