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THE 68TH EDITION FOR ALL PLYMOUTH TEACHERS APRIL 2007

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academies. She called on Gordon Brown to carry

CONFERENCE REPORT 2007 out his promise to match the funding for private
schools for all our schools. The nursery programme
The historic had failed to deliver properly she said, not least
installation of because fewer qualified nursery teachers were
Baljeet Ghale, being employed. She called for “a rich range of
the first black staff who work as a team.”
The President referred to the success of achieving
President of the the class size maximum of 30 in KS1, but then
NUT, was an noted that it was at the expense of other Key
inspiring stages.
occasion. On SATs Baljeet quoted author Phillip Pullman:
Baljeet, who “SATs are like the deadly poisonous tree that sits in
visited Plymouth the middle spreading its deadly influence all over
last month, made schools and education.”
She attacked the competition between schools and
a wide ranging teachers generated by league tables and the
and intensely categories of ‘Gifted and Talented’, ‘Struggling’ and
political address. ‘Average’ into which students are placed by this
government.
She reflected on the journey she had made since She deplored the reduction of the Ethnic Minority
her arrival from Kenya, the role her parents had Achievement Grant (EMAG) funding and the
played in the trade union movement and her own consequences for the achievement of black
30 year membership of the NUT. students.
She referred to a number of landmarks this year: BRITISHNESS
the 200th anniversary of the Act abolishing slavery, Baljeet questioned Education Secretary Alan
the sixtieth year since the liberation of India from Johnson’s notion of ‘Britishness’, something the
‘the shackles of colonialism’ and 40 years since the press chose to misrepresent. “To demand that
illegal Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the people conform to an imposed view of Britishness
Gaza Strip. only fuels racism.” She emphasised the need to
EDUCATION IN THE LAST 10 YEARS embrace everyone regardless of colour or creed,
Baljeet critically reviewed the past 10 years of the as racism “is not always overt but is multi-faceted,
government. She showed that funding and the often subtle and sometimes without malicious
building programme were tied into privatisation intent.”
through Private Finance Initiatives (PFI), trusts and Baljeet also presented a view of what

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Call the Joining Hotline 0845 300 1669
schools should be like, a view her own students In the debate on rising temperatures in schools it
contributed—a warm, comfortable building, qualified was agreed to press the Government to set the
teachers, clean classrooms, good equipment, a safe upper limit in classrooms at a maximum 24°C as
school, no racism or bullying and teachers to be advised by the World Health Organisation.
funny but controlling!
The RIG social partnership was described as a Climate change and sustainable development was
“complete joke,” with our working conditions recognised by Conference as one of the most
deteriorating further. Baljeet said she was proud to serious issues confronting us all. It was agreed that
be President of the NUT which has not signed away the NUT should work with schools, local authorities
members’ rights. She ended by saying that our and government to ensure that sustainable practices
professional opinions should be respected and that are embedded into all aspects of school life.
businesses should be removed from schools. It was also recognised that wars such as those in
Afghanistan and Iraq are having a devastating
A 2½% pay rise this effect not only on the peoples of those countries
year and 2% for the but also on the environment in which we all live.
following 3 years when Proposer Jo Lang asked how much domestic
inflation is currently recycling would it take to offset the effects of a
4.8% is a pay cut in depleted uranium tipped missile?
anyone’s language.
Avril Hall-Callaghan from the Ulster Teachers’ Union
Do you deserve it? [UTU] addressed Conference and spoke about the
amalgamation of the major Ulster teacher unions.
“You can’t value public servants They negotiated the retention of MAs with the NI
government and have avoided the problems of TLRs.
if you cut their pay” Initially the NASUWT and ATL joined in with UTU’s
consultations, but now the NASUWT has decided to
Steve Sinnott Calls For Strike Action Over Pay take legal action against UTU opposing the retention of
An Executive motion supported by the General MAs.
Secretary calling for a one day strike across the
public sector in response to Gordon Browns’ pay In another historic moment Conference resolved to
freeze, “as a first stage of any industrial action affiliate to the Stop the War Coalition. Devon
which is required to protect the pay of teachers delegate Amal Choueiri also became the first
and other public sector workers” was carried Palestinian to speak to Conference in the debate on
unanimously. War, and its effects on children’s education.
Mark Serwotka General Secretary of the Public and In the debate on performance related pay Jan
Commercial Services union (PCS) was invited to Neilsen from South London said that after two
address Conference. He called on us to support the decades of target-based education the experience
250,000 members of his union taking national strike of teachers was that performance related pay had
action on 1st May, International Workers’ Day, nothing to do with better pay or better education.
against a total of 54,000 job cuts, low pay and She said UNICEF reports showed that children in
privatisation. The PCS has launched the Make Your Britain are among the most unhappy and deprived in
Vote Count campaign in the run-up to the elections the Western world. “At some point you have to
on 3rd May by putting pressure on candidates, asking draw a line in the sand and be prepared to stand
them where they stand on issues such as pay and job up for your principles.”
losses.
Frontline workers have been critically injured by The section on young teachers’ pay highlighted
increasingly frustrated claimants. Workers in call costs of housing, debt and the increased retirement
centres have been subjected to hourly monitoring and age of 65. One delegate said that young people
even have to put their hand up to go to the toilet. from a diversity of backgrounds were being priced
Mark Serwotka described “an orgy of privatisation” out of teaching. The SW is now only second to
across the board. Meanwhile bonuses of nearly £9 London for the price of housing. Building Societies
billion were paid out in the City this winter. Mark and banks are applying 7x and up to 10x salaries for
recognised the problems of performance manage- mortgages. The average graduate’s first salary is
ment, classroom observation and bullying managers over £26k so what incentive is there for a teacher
within teaching and encouraged the NUT to support with less than a £20k salary, student loans to pay off
the PCS struggle. and salary erosion until 2011?
 John Illingworth, a former
Nottingham primary
school head teacher
forced out of teaching be-
cause of a nervous
breakdown caused by the
bullying demands of
OfSTED, spoke in the
“EVERY TEACHER MATTERS” debate about teachers’
mental health. He told us
about the research he had been helping to conduct
into teacher stress. He said that the biggest issue is
teachers not being able to admit to themselves that
they have a problem. It was a sobering contribution.
“The more bullying and
unreasonable demands
[conflicting with our
professional judgement]
are made on teachers,
the less chance there is
that they will rebel and
say NO MORE !
Martin Edmonds from the
Plymouth delegation
spoke in the debate on
SEN. His remarks were
warmly received.

“Unity in action at workplace “We need a union not in partnership with

level really works”
Mine really is bigger than yours!
We were told by a delegate that the Electoral Reform
Society lists NASUWT membership as 203,000. This
coincides with TUC audited accounts. The NUT only
recruits qualified teachers and has at least 50,000
more members.
More worryingly, their DGS affirmed that the
NASUWT, “Had no problem with teachers losing
pay in the TLR restructure.” This unhelpful remark
was made during joint union action at Holy Cross
Primary in Derby. There was a successful outcome
here as the two unions continued to work together;
the NASUWT school rep is on record saying we
should all be in one union...
A young teacher said, “Teachers worrying about
debts and in poor housing does impact their
teaching. It’s about time teachers were paid properly.
If something is wrong it needs fixing.”
In the debate on Lesson Observation it was said
that observation isn’t about raising standards—it’s
about control. Rigid curriculums are found in
totalitarian states.
government but in partnership with teachers”
Building Schools For The Future is a disguised
way to impose academies and trust schools on
unsuspecting local communities. The 3 main tenets
seem to be passing educational funds to private
partners, setting up academies and extending the
vocational agenda for working class children.
Conference resolved for the Executive to ballot the
membership to set up a political fund with a
recommendation for a ‘Yes’ vote. Without a political
fund Jerry Glazier from the Executive said that the
NUT could not by law call for a vote against fascist
organisations such as the British National Party
(BNP) for example, on May 3rd—see page 4.
“It’s possible to look at the context of
poverty and physical progress
at 22 months and accurately predict
academic achievement at age 26”
Steve Sinnott announced that the NUT is to sue Alan
Johnson over his decision to exclude the largest
teachers’ union in Europe from negotiations over the
conditions of service of teachers.
“Every Child
Matters—only if they
get level 7 in their
SATs!”
80m children worldwide
don’t go to school—the
“Your majority are girls.
standard
of living The TES—£1=30
An apple for the teacher—
must
35p
fall” Having a qualified
teacher—priceless !
 SOUTHWAY & PLYMPTON LOCAL ELECTION MAY 3rd

Fringe Meetings decision making.” Steve Sinnott

was the key speaker.
There were many fringe meetings.
There were also meetings on the
Included among them was a packed
environment, Unite Against
Anti-Academies & Trust Schools
Fascism, Stop the War and
Alliance meeting, where it was said
Palestine.
“the difference between a trust and
Steve Sinnott spoke at the Tell it
an academy is the money – with a
Like It Is meeting on the hurdles to
trust you don’t get any. There is
educational achievement for black
no democracy—teachers and
and minority students.
parents are not involved in the
Conference passed a motion Tackling Racism and Fascism
recognising the value of qualified in Our Schools
supply teachers. We also call for all
This Conference fringe meeting
PPA time to be covered by qualifiedlaunched the Love Music Hate
teachers, and especially those headRacism DVD, a joint venture between "The BNP are not a
teachers who are in the NUT, not tothe NUT and Unite Against Fascism. legitimate political party.
use HLTAs (or anybody else) withoutThe key point made at the meeting They are an insult to every-
qualified teacher status to cover was that we must work to ensure that one who fought in the 2nd
teachers’ PPA time. Let’s have the BNP are not given legitimacy. We World War. Everyone must
qualified teachers in front of every
need to maximise the involvement of vote to stop them."
single class! staff and students to fight fascism and Julie Hesmondhalgh
[Next month see Baroness Fookes racism in the lead up to the Coronation Street actress
award the first “A QUALIFIED forthcoming local and future elections.
TEACHER IN EVERY CLASS” kite Plymouth Division:
plymnut@teacher.clara.co.uk
mark in Plymouth. May also be seen 01503 240527
Regional Office:
in The Herald] south.west@nut.org,uk
01392 258028