Teachers from across the UK will be gathering in Birmingham at the Annual Conference of the NASUWT, the largest teachers’ union in the UK, over the Easter weekend.
The issues which are being debated have been selected by a ballot of all of the Union’s teacher and school leader members and include the mental health of teachers, workload, marking policies, vocational pathways and assessment.
Teacher recruitment and retention, and issues surrounding inspection and the misuse of capability procedures will also be high on the agenda.
At the heart of all the debates will be the impact of government policy on children and young people.
Rt Hon Nicky Morgan MP, Secretary of State for Education, will be addressing the Conference at 10am on Saturday 26th March.
Over the course of the Conference, the NASUWT will be issuing a number of reports on issues including the impact of financial hardship on children’s education, flexible working and social media abuse.
Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, said:
“This Conference focuses on the issues that our teacher and school leader members across the country have told us are their priorities.
“It comes as no surprise to the NASUWT that high on the agenda of teachers and school leaders is the teacher recruitment and retention crisis, which is being driven by deep cuts to pay, increases in pension contributions and excessive workload.
“School funding across the UK has also been identified as a key issue and this debate will be even timelier given the recent announcement on funding for schools in England.
“The teachers and school leaders gathering in Birmingham will be in determined mood. They will be sending a strong message to parents, the public and to politicians that our great public education service is in peril from government policies which fail to recognise the importance of education to the life chances of our children and young people and to the economic future of the country.”
“Holding the Conference at the Birmingham ICC will provide us with the opportunity to engage directly with the public over the Easter weekend to raise awareness of these important issues."
