ENGLAND’S four education unions have announced unprecedented plans to co-ordinate national strike action over plummeting take-home pay, real-terms school funding cuts and crippling workloads.

The National Education Union (NEU) and NASUWT, alongside school leaders’ unions NAHT and ASCL, pledged today to unite and send Tory Education Secretary Gillian Keegan a “clear signal that our dispute is not going away.”  

The dramatic development, which coincided with the opening day of NAHT’s two-day annual conference in Telford, followed strike action by NEU members on Thursday.

The walkouts – set to continue on Tuesday – could soon escalate as the other three unions have already announced their intention to ballot members this summer.

Ms Keegan branded the industrial action “extremely disappointing,” but the NEU stressed it had no choice but to act after the government spent April “doing nothing” to settle the long-running dispute.

A whopping 98 per cent of NEU members rejected the Department for Education’s latest “insulting” below-inflation wage offer in a ballot which closed earlier this month.

Appearing alongside the leaders of his fellow teaching unions today NEU joint general secretary Kevin Courtney said: “In washing her hands of any responsibility for resolving the teacher dispute, the Education Secretary has united the teaching profession.

“Investment in this generation of children’s education, with professionals shown the value and respect they deserve, should be a priority.

“Parents and the education profession will be in no doubt that if further industrial action needs to be taken the blame for this will lie squarely at the government’s door.”

NAHT leader Paul Whiteman echoed the charge, saying: “Any illusions ministers may have had that we would be put off by their derisory first offer and refusal to continue to negotiate should be shattered.

“We are fully united together in fighting for change.”

NASUWT head Dr Patrick Roach warned Westminster it “must negotiate a deal that is acceptable to our members or deal with the consequences,” while ASCL general secretary Geoff Barton said: “We are committed to working with other unions to fight for fairer pay, improved funding and manageable workloads.”

Further strikes in both Scotland and Wales have been avoided following much-improved salary deals from devolved SNP and Labour ministers respectively.