Staff at Roedean School have voted to strike over teachers’ pension changes and redundancies, the school has confirmed to parents.
The National Education Union (NEU) informed Roedean’s leadership that a number of its members support industrial action, with the first strike day scheduled for April 30 if talks fail.
Five additional non-consecutive strike days in May are also planned.
The school explained it would do its best to tell parents well in advance.
In a letter to parents, the school said it was still in negotiations with the union and hoped to avoid disruption.
However, it has prepared a “detailed mitigation plan” to minimise the impact on pupils should the strikes go ahead.
Read more: Jobs could be lost at Roedean School in Brighton
The dispute centres on changes to the school’s contributions to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, as well as a number of staff redundancies.
In the letter, the school said the cost of employer contributions had risen from eight per cent of salary in 2003 to 28 per cent and described this as “unsustainable”.
Teachers are being offered a choice to remain in the existing pension scheme or move to a new defined contribution scheme.
Within the letter, the school said: “We understand this is an emotive issue for staff, and we are trying to propose changes which are motivated by the need to manage the finances of the school to ensure it remains in good shape for generations to come.”
The school also pointed to wider financial pressures in the independent education sector, including recent changes to tax rules, inflation, and costs related to the pandemic.
Roedean said it had already improved its offer to the union and was awaiting a response and that parents will be given more information if the strikes are confirmed.
In a statement a spokesperson for the school said: “Roedean School has not been immune to the significant cost pressures the sector has faced in recent years, and we are currently looking at how to manage costs in a fair way that does not impact on the overall high quality of education here.
“We continue to discuss our proposals with colleagues and remain hopeful that the possibility of strike action can be avoided.”
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