Union criticizes 'chaotic' Pimlico Academy as school defends teaching hours

Tap above for video report by Ria Chatterjee

The UK's largest teachers' union has described the management of Pimlico Academy as "chaotic" as staff walked out on strike on Tuesday.

Teachers protested outside the school gates and said the current workload forced the walkout.

"Where there are really deep-seated problems in the school and in the trust beyond a certain point members have said they need to take a stand - they need change to take place," said Martin Donohue from the National Education Union.

"They're clear about that. And that's in the best interests of the children and staff going forward. It's been chaotic and I think we want to move beyond that," he added.

The school said it was disappointed and added that strike action was harming students.

"We are disappointed that, despite our commitment to ongoing, constructive discussions, the NEU has decided to initiate this course of action," the school said in a statement.

"Future Academies would like to reiterate our commitment to resolving this matter. Our students have already faced enough disruption to learning this year due to the pandemic," it added.

The school said the outstanding issue was around teaching hours.

"We would like to inform parents and carers that our teachers at Pimlico Academy have lighter teaching loads than in a large proportion of other schools. We would remind NEU members that action such as this should be a last resort and directly harms our students," the school said.

The headteacher resigned earlier this year following mass student protests over a discrimination row.