Executive Meeting: July 2009

The full executive met on 16th July 2008

Christine Blower, General Secretary, gave her end-of-term report.

She highlighted the importance of building the SATS campaign for the Autumn Term, in partnership with the NAHT. She has visited a number of local associations: some had been successfully running SATS Saturday campaign events, while others felt it was too late in the term, and were focusing on Autumn term campaigns. A question was asked about differing responses by NAHT head teachers and their local reps in different areas (some heads not wanting to support the campaign) Christine realised that this was going to be difficult, especially ate the NAHT has never balloted for action before in its 112 year history. We need to build local links with NAHT organisations and members to develop a strong campaign.

Christine welcomed the formal partnership agreement that was signed with our further and higher education colleagues in UCU. She also looked forward to developing and expanding existing partnerships with our sister union EIS in Scotland.

Christine reported that Education International is supporting campaigns to defend and promote education worldwide in the light of the global economic crisis. The TUC is to make a formal response on the economic crisis that is likely to refer to this- and this will feature prominently at the forthcoming TUC Annual Congress. You can read about the EI campaign by clicking here.

Christine reported that the union continues to lobby in Parliament on the Single Equalities Bill, the Child Poverty Bill and on the issue of Trade Union Recognition in Academies. She recognised that the White Paper will take up much of our time in Parliamentary terms: she noted that there were a lot of worthy sentiments and no money ! She was looking forward to meeting the new schools minister Vernon Coaker (NUT member) in the round of STPCD discussions.

A question was asked by Mick Lerry about the large number of unjust suspensions of teachers that has been highlighted by the evidence from the Parliamentary Select Committee. Christine endorsed comments made on this subject by the chair, Barry Sheerman MP, and the union is following up on these.

The executive nominated Patrick Murphy, Nina Franklin, Julie Lyon Taylor, Judy Moorhouse, Ken Rustidge and Alan Rutter to be the executive delegation to the TUC Congress. I will be part of the delegation as an NUT member of a TUC Equalities Committee. The executive agreed to send two motions to Congress, one on the economic crisis and one on pensions. I was disappointed that the motion on Child Poverty was not prioritises. (I have since had discussions with London region members to see if we can submit that motion to SERTUC.)

It was agreed to set up a General Election Strategy Committee to formulate the union's responses and campaigning during next year's General Election, and in particular how we can advance issues such as class size, SATS campaign etc. It is also important that we target our Political Fund resources to combating the BNP. I was nominated to serve on this committee.

A motion calling on the NUT to support the UCU lobby of the Labour Party conference on the issue of youth unemployment was passed.

EEPD Committee: PRU Task Group

The Task group on Pupil Referral Units had met on 29th June, and their report was tabled at the EEPD Committee for consideration.

The meeting had discussed teh resolution at Annual Conference on Pupil Referral Units and Exclusion, and were keen to find out what the Government had done since the publication of the Back on Track document (which raised the spectre of PRU services being provided by profit-making private sector providers.) Members of the group had reported on difficulties where some local authorities had failed to introduce Fair Access protocols, thus making it difficult for PRUs to successfully reintegrate pupils back into mainstream education.

The group asked for the union to promote the work of the Prus.org.uk conference, for which more than 200 delegates had registered. The task group also discussed plans for a specific NUT event for members working in PRUs, and details of this will be published shortly.


The EEPD committee agreed to endorse recommendations from this group that the Union:

• Survey members in PRUs and Division Secretaries to assess the issues in PRUs.
• Produce a briefing note for members explaining Government developments since Back on Track
• Ask the union's Communications sub-committee to consider if there was more space available for articles about PRU issues.

EEPD Committee: GTC News

Max Hyde, NUT nominee, reported back from the latest meeting of the General Teaching Council of England meeting.


The contentious issue of the proposed 5 year "licence to teach" was raised, particularly around the entitlement to Continuing Professional Development. The GTCE is expected to take this proposal forward for new teachers and returners to the profession from September 2010. There were lots of unanswered questions about the implications of this. (It is worrying that the NASUWT General Secretary appears to be supporting the Licence to Teach proposal. Does this really represent the views of her members ?)


There was a discussion around the contentious Teachers' Code of Conduct. As reported earlier, Max had been one of several people to press for the code to regulate whether members of fascist organisations such as the BNP were eligible to register as teachers (given the respect for equality and diversity in teachers professional requirements !). GTC insist that the Council cannot legally discuss this issue. Max also raised the question of additional local codes of conduct imposed by individual employers and authorities, and the GTCE will discuss this with employer representatives. There was a vote on accepting the Code of Conduct, in which Max voted AGAINST.


There was an item on equality issues. Max reported that the GTCE is to ask the Government to review the Fitness to Teach regulations, which we feel are a blunt tool. This is a welcome development. Max also reported that the Equality and Diversity training for GTCE members will be opt-in only, and her concerns that this would leave some members of the Council (including those who conduct hearings) without the appropriate training. I spoke in the committee supporting Max' concern, and suggesting that such training needed to be seen as both an entitlement and an obligation for members of the GTCE council. Max agreed to write in personally and state this.

EEPD Committee: Education White Paper

The Government has published its White Paper "Building a 21st Century Schools System" and there was significant discussion on this, and the Union is to formulate a detailed response. You can read the white paper here.


My personal view is that the white paper contains a lot of well-intentioned but fairly bland statements, that nobody could disagree with, while being light on how these commitments will necessarily be delivered and funded.


Within the paper, there are a number of worrying developments, such as the 5-year Licence to Teach, which is being wrapped up in pledges about teachers' entitlement to CPD, but not addressing the question of how the licence will be another stick for (the small but significant number of...) vindictive and bullying headteachers to use against teachers. We already have robust and often inappropriately used competency procedures in schools, this is an unnecessary and bureaucratic gimmick. It is a pity that Chris Keates, leader of NASUWT appears to have fallen for the CPD angle to justify her union SUPPORTING this policy.


The paper talks about schools co-operating, and strong accountability, and yet promises to extend the creation of privatised and unaccountable academy schools, and the trust school model weakening democratic accountability.


The celebration of the School Report Card system promises another blunt instrument for pseudo-accountability, while retaining the divisive system of league tables.


And, of course, at a time when both the Labour Government and the Tory opposition are making noises about public spending restraint- how are all the expectations in the White Paper going to be funded. Or are they going to be yet further burdens on (real terms) shrinking schools budgets ?

EEPD Committee: Curriculum Reform

The committee was asked to approve and send to the Full Executive, the detailed response from the NUT to the QCA Consultation on proposals to change the Primary Curriculum.


You can read the full submission by the Union by clicking here.


I would particularly like to thank those NUT members in Kent, East Sussex, Brighton and Hove and Medway who also responded personally to the QCA consultation.

EEPD Committee: Children's Centres

OfSTED are currently consulting on the requirement for the organisation to inspect Children's Centres. The committee had a discussion on the consultation document, and has asked the Committee Secretary to prepare a response from the Union to meet the deadline of 18th September. This will be discussed at the September executive meeting at the start of next term.


NUT members who have an interest in Children's Centres are also able to respond directly to the consultation. You can read OfSTED's consultation document by clicking here.

O+M Committee: ICT for Teachers

The committee received a report on the ICT for Teachers programme, providing free local courses for NUT members in various areas of ICT. This programme has been highly successful, and will continue to run next term.

Details of the courses and locations can be found on the NUT website. There is a course running in September at Canterbury College.

O+M Committee: Recruitment Time !

Members of the Committee discussed the forthcoming Autumn Term recruitment campaigns- in particular the Something for Everyone campaign- noting:-

• 4 terms for £1 for newly qualified teachers (I raised the point that we needed to clarify that we were talking about 16 months- "term" can be used in different ways, especially where schools operate the so-called six term year !)
• 4 terms for the price of three for other new joiners (same point raised by me !)
• Prize draw for members recruiting a friend to the union
• Continuing to promote the FREE student membership for trainee teachers- including those on RTP and GTP programmes.