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Teachers locked out of school in row with trust

Stuart Woodward/BBC Group of people in winter clothing holding union flags outside a school fence.Stuart Woodward/BBC
Unionised teaching staff who had voted to take action said they had been locked out of the school by the academy trust

At least 25 teachers have been locked out of a secondary school after they voted to take industrial action short of a strike.

Members of teachers union NASUWT at Gable Hall School in Corringham, Essex, have been involved in an ongoing dispute over workload and working practices.

The Ortu Federation is currently running the school with Mossbourne Trust Management, which will formally take over on 31 December. In a letter to the union it confirmed the lockout from Wednesday.

"During this period of industrial action, the participating employees should stay away from work and will not be paid," the letter said.

"Participating staff will not be permitted to enter the premises or perform their duties until they are prepared to comply with their contractual obligations in full."

Stuart Woodward/BBC Kim Vollerthun in a high visibility jacket, with a red coat underneath. He has a beard and his hair appears to be tied back in a pony tail. He is holding a blue flag. There are people crowded behind him.Stuart Woodward/BBC
Kim Vollerthun claimed that a lot of teachers were leaving the school

Kim Vollerthun, an organiser at NASUWT for the Eastern region, said the trust had introduced new policies which conflicted with the teachers' contractual agreements - such as staff having to supervise children at lunchtimes, during line-up before lessons and taking cover lessons.

"All of these elements and changes have a detrimental impact on their health and wellbeing and it has led to a lot of teachers leaving the school," said Mr Vollerthun.

Speaking anonymously to the BBC, a teacher said staff had already postponed action in November, hoping to reach a compromise.

The teacher said they had not been offered any time off in lieu or additional pay for what they believed were additional duties and were concerned about what they described as "adverse management practices".

Stuart Woodward/BBC School sign detailing name of school.Stuart Woodward/BBC
Teachers at the school have been trying to negotiate with academy trust bosses over expected workloads

NASUWT said its members planned to refuse to undertake cover for absence, unless they were employed on a contract wholly or mainly on this basis.

The union said it had raised the matter directly with the secretary of state for education.

The Ortu Federation told the BBC it had asked staff members to "fulfil contractual obligations of 1,265 hours per academic year as set out in the current edition of the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document, which came into force on 3 November 2023".

It said: "The federation's objectives are for students to learn in a safe environment and make excellent progress."

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