'School support staff are the backbone of our schools'

On the second day of UNISON’s local government conference, hosted in Brighton, school staff took centre stage.

Two of the first motions passed in the morning's session, chaired by UNISON vice president Debbie Rowden, were for better pay and safer conditions for school support staff, who make up around half of UNISON’s local government service group members.

Introducing a ‘pay in schools’ motion, Jess Powell (pictured above) from UNISON’s school sector committee, said: “Right now, staff feel stretched, they feel undervalued, and they are underpaid. Year after year, support staff take on more responsibility. Roles expand, expectations increase, but pay has not kept pace.”

Jess stated that school support staff covered by the NJC in England, Cymru and Northern Ireland have seen the real value of their pay decline by an estimated 25-30% since 2010.

She acknowledged that the school support staff negotiating body (SSSNB), a statutory negotiating body for school support staff in England, will become formally re-constituted later this year. Cymru and Northern Ireland will continue to be represented through the NJC.

“The return of the SSSNB was not an accident, it’s because our union campaigned persistently and consistently for it,” said Jess. She then called on members to use this opportunity to mount a strong campaign for better pay for school support staff.

“For too long, the bottom of the pay spine has hovered just above the union wage. That does not reflect the skill, responsibility and professionalism of the work that support staff do every day. We need a fair, national approach. Wherever our members are, the issue is the same. They deserve fair pay, respect, and a genuine voice.”

“Improving pay cannot come from already-stretched school budgets. Governments cannot stand up and praise school staff while refusing to properly fund them.”

Speaking in support of the motion, one member said, “As a Black teaching assistant, I feel overlooked and undervalued, even though I hold multiple skills. Some people have to depend on other sources of income, like universal credit, because they cannot depend on their salary alone.”

The motion, which passed unanimously, was amended by Haringey UNISON to acknowledge the specific inequalities that support staff in London face. In London, there are seven boroughs where support staff are paid the outer London rate, while teaching staff in the same schools receive the inner London weighting. 

A safe working environment for all school support staff

Introducing another motion on a safer working environment for school support staff, Jess Powell said, “Everyone deserves to feel safe at work, but for many school support staff, this is far from a reality.

“Violence from pupils is now a daily reality for school support staff. They are kicked, bitten and scratched. They are being sworn at and having objects thrown at them.”

Jess cited a 2020 survey from school support staff that discovered that nearly half had experienced violent behaviour from a pupil in the last year.

“No one should go to work expecting to be abused, and yet too often staff are made to feel that it is simply part of the job. We must say that clearly and collectively.”

To add to this, Jess described how job cuts have left a higher amount of responsibility on a fewer number of people’s shoulders, with many support staff now covering teaching, pastoral, safeguarding and medical duties well beyond the scope of their original role, often without additional pay, recognition or training.

The root causes, she said, are the same: long-term underfunding and under-investment in schools.

The motion was amended by Camden and Birmingham UNISON branches to acknowledge that, all too often, schools do not use proper health and safety reporting systems, meaning there is not accurate data to identify risk areas, and that risks are minimised.

Schools convenor for Camden UNISON Marsha Davis, said, “Our buildings are often in disrepair, and our staffing levels are acute with unmanageable workloads and pupils trying to learn in unsuitable conditions.

“But we wanted to add that all too often, SLTS in schools don’t take safety seriously enough. They don’t have systems for us to report problems

“This is underpinned by the league table system, who wants to send their children to unsafe schools? This pushes senior leadership teams into underreporting health and safety issues.

“The solution to this is a serious campaign for more funding for schools. Within that, we have to be paid properly. If we stay low-paid women workers, which most support staff are, we are expendable. Nobody takes us seriously.

“That’s why next week we have over 50 teaching assistants in two schools out on strike, and striking to win.”

Speaking in support of the motion on behalf of Belfast education branch, Joanna McCarthy said: “Support staff are the backbone of our schools. They’re the steady hands and calm voices that keep the schools running. But classroom assistants are frequently left to deal with violent or distressed children on their own.

“Nobody should be placed in a situation where they fear for their own safety when they’re with a child. The system must do better. Safety grows when communication is open, training is ongoing and staff know they are valued.

“Northern Ireland’s primary schools are filled with dedicated, compassionate and hard-working people. When we protect and support them, we protect and support our children.”

Conference delegates passed several other motions relating to school staff, including calls to campaign for a fully-funded school and additional needs system across the UK, and to address the crisis in SEND provision.