Teachers continue seven days of strike action at schools in Berwick, Tweedmouth and Wooler

The education union NASUWT has previously said that the closure of Glendale, Tweedmouth and Berwick middle schools would put 142 staff at risk, with only around 50-60 jobs available to apply for after restructuring the Berwick Partnership to a two-tier system.

Northumberland County Council has said that its aim is “to secure permanent employment for all staff over the next two years”.

However, the union continues to have the view that the local authority has failed to engage in meaningful consultation to ensure its members’ jobs are protected and so further strike action is now taking place following a number of walkouts earlier this year.

They are on strike on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week and further action is set to take place on Tuesday, October 22, Wednesday, October 23 and Thursday, October 24.

Dr Patrick Roach, NASUWT General Secretary, said: “The council are behaving appallingly in refusing to do everything possible to save jobs and engage in a full consultation with those affected.

“Our members have enormous talent, expertise and teaching experience that can be used for the benefit of children and young people in Northumberland.

“But instead of finding imaginative and workable solutions to mitigate the reorganisation, they are refusing to work with us and the members and trying to force through these jobs cuts.

“Members are standing up to this and fighting for their jobs and so have no other option but to take further strike action.”

In terms of what its members want from the council and the partnership headteachers, the union states they should be engaging in a full consultation exercise. This would, it says, produce a working document that would afford them the protection that they were promised and any solution also has to include the option of meaningful voluntary redundancy programme.

John Hall, NASUWT National Executive member for Northumberland, said: “We believe the council owes it to staff and pupils to pursue other options such as redeployment so that as many jobs can be saved as possible

“We have sought at every stage of this process to work with the council, but our members have been left with no option than to move to strike action.

“The council must now listen and work with us on a plan to avoid the compulsory loss of these skilled and dedicated teachers from their local community. The council should do everything it can to keep these brilliant committed teachers, not take their jobs away in such a short-sighted and insensitive way.”

A county council spokesperson said: “Our aim is to secure permanent employment for all staff over the next two years. This will include recruitment, redeployment and retraining as appropriate.

“We continue to work closely with the schools and the trade unions to ensure staff across the partnership are supported during this process.

“There has been extensive engagement with all unions and particularly with the NASUWT and NEU, who were taking industrial action in the summer term. These consultations have been positive and recruitment procedures have been fully agreed with all partners.

“At our last meeting, there were no areas of fundamental disagreement and we agreed to work together on further details. As a result, we are both surprised and saddened that despite the progress being made, the NASUWT has decided to go ahead with this unilateral and extensive strike action.”

Cllr Guy Renner-Thompson, cabinet member for inspiring young people, added: “The comments from Dr Patrick Roach are completely false.

“There has been extensive consultation with all parties in the process for years – the same process which has just been completed in Amble with no issues.

“Mr Roach has never been in contact with Northumberland County Council. I have written to him to inviting him to a meeting with the council to explain the restructure and staffing process in place.

“The council, headteachers and school governors are working hard to ensure affected staff gain permanent employment. Unexpected and unilateral strike action does not help the process and only harms the children who are missing out on vital education.”