Victory for staff as academy chain drops plans to axe jobs

UNISON has today (Wednesday) welcomed a decision by the Ormiston Academies Trust to drop plans to cut jobs across England, which it was feared could put the safety and support of pupils at primary and secondary schools at risk.

The trust, which operates 38 schools across the country, had proposed cuts affecting up to 130 posts involving maintenance, caretaking and ICT (information and communications technology) roles.

Employees at schools across the East of England, East Midlands, North West, South East, West Midlands and Yorkshire & Humberside faced a range of changes to their jobs including redundancies, pay cuts and working across several locations.

The rethink will provide relief for the staff who had feared for their jobs, says UNISON. The union has been campaigning for the Trust to drop the plans amid concerns that not enough consideration had been given to the impact on the health, safety and welfare of children at the affected schools.

UNISON head of education Jon Richards said: “It’s welcome news that the Ormiston trust has listened to staff and unions.

“The proposal to cut back on caretakers and other staff would have had a terrible impact on the health and safety of pupils and staff.

“We will continue to work with Ormiston to improve services without affecting children’s education by cutting jobs and resources.

“This decision sends a clear signal to those in government championing cuts and centralisation of support staff that the risks to pupils simply aren’t acceptable.”

Notes to editors:
– Staff whose jobs were under threat include those responsible for maintenance emergencies, fire safety checks and ensuring fire alarms and escape routes are up to scratch. They also carry out building checks to make sure they’re safe and free of hazardous materials, such as asbestos.
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union, with more than 1.3 million members providing public services – in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in both the public and private sectors.

Media contacts:
Anthony Barnes T: 0207 121 5255 M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk
Garfield Myrie T: 0207 121 5546 M: 07432 741565 E: g.myrie@unison.co.uk

The article Victory for staff as academy chain drops plans to axe jobs first appeared on the UNISON National site.

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