The National Education Union (NEU) announced on Saturday that teachers in England will be striking nationally on the 5th and 7th of July due to “inadequate” pay. The strike action would result in many schools fully or partially closing.

The NEU are demanding pay increases that are above the current UK inflation rate, extra bonuses to ensure that future pay rises do not come from the schools current budget and extra support for pupil resources and equipment. The Department for Education offered to add £1000 into schools’ budget and increased teaching salaries by 4.3%, as outlined in the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) report. However, the NEU rejected the £1000 payment as they believed that the offer was not fully funded long-term and that schools would need to make cuts in other areas to afford it. According to the Institute of Fiscal Studies, the government’s suggested pay increase would be insufficient with inflation and result in salary cuts.

Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, did not re-negotiate because she says her Department is waiting for another STRB report to recommend a revised pay. Keegan wrote to the NEU saying, “I am sure you will understand that the government will not comment on this speculation whilst it considers its response to the report.” Unions have stated that the new report will not be released until next month and allege that Keegan’s delay would leave schools unable to fiscally plan for next academic year.

Education officials in Scotland and Wales have already settled pay disputes, but the announcement from the NEU means that teachers will still be going on strike. UK teachers recently went on strike in May, and less than half of primary and secondary school were fully open. In 2023, there have been three regional and five national strike days in England – similar actions have been taken in Northern Ireland and Wales.