Teachers striking at Paston College over 'excessive workload' issues
This industrial action taking place at the North Walsham college has been organised by the National Education Union
Some teachers at North Walsham's Paston College are striking today, over worries about excessive workloads.
National Education Union (NEU) members are joining with those in the University and College Union- in their separate dispute over pay.
The NEU claim that 'recent changes' to the timetable have resulted in an 'extra, sudden, significant increase in workload this year'.
This union claim this is seen most clearly with teachers having their contact time with pupils increase, at the expense of their time to plan and prepare for lessons.
It's argued this is all having a severe impact on teachers' wellbeing and their free-time.
This industrial action is taking place on the same days that the University and College Union are taking strike action over pay for college staff.
NEU says this has been organised to show 'solidarity' with their separate dispute.
"Teachers are the best resource that a school or a college can have"
Tim Wilkes works for the National Education Union in Norfolk:
"The real fear is that if teachers and those who work in education are not treated properly, then we will carry on losing more teachers and lecturers and this will have a long-term impact on our local young people.
"We are taking action on the behalf of young people because what we want to have are teachers that are well-qualified and motivated.
"Teachers are the best resource that a school or a college can have"
"We now very much want to get back to those discussions with management, so that we can find a way to move forwards on this.
"One which provides additional time for staff to plan and assess appropriately".
"We have listened to staff concerns around workload"
A spokesperson for City College Norwich, Easton College and Paston College, said:
“We’re disappointed that some members of the UCU have decided to take industrial action.
“We share the union’s desire to see the pay gap closed between Further Education (FE) teachers and their counterparts in schools. This is something that requires action at Government level.
"Our college has consistently advocated for FE teaching staff to be given parity of pay, and we will continue to join with the sector in lobbying for this.
“The pay increases of 10% that the UCU is asking for is simply unaffordable for the college at this time. We are already operating with a budget deficit and have been working diligently to safeguard the college’s financial stability.
"We have, however, made a 2% pay award now with a commitment to review our pay position in April 2026, when we hope our position around any additional student funding will become clearer.
“We have listened to staff concerns around workload. That is why we have placed creating manageable workloads, supporting staff wellbeing, and reducing sickness at the heart of our transformation process, which commenced earlier this year.
"We are focused on working smarter, not harder, as we embrace new technologies and new ways of teaching and learning.
“We have put in place plans to allow all our sites to remain open on these dates and to keep any disruption to students and apprentices’ learning to an absolute minimum. This includes making sure that all scheduled assessments and exams are going ahead as planned.
“The areas which are an exception to this is our Inclusive Learning provision, some specialist courses for 16-18-year-olds and some adult courses.
"This decision has not been taken lightly, but we must prioritise the safety and wellbeing of our students and consider the level of care and supervision required, which we feel we are unable to meet without full staffing in place.
“Communications have gone out to all of our students, apprentices, parents/carers and employers, and we thank them all for their support.”