Why are the National Education Union balloting teacher members?
NEU indicative ballots of teachers and support staff in England carried out between February and April showed overwhelming support for strike action over the issue of pay, funding and workload.
The Government has since proposed a 3.5 per cent increase in September 2026, followed by a 3 per cent increase in September 2027. With inflation likely to rise, this will do nothing to reverse the teacher pay cuts against inflation of some 20 per cent since 2010. Furthermore, schools are expected to pay the first 1.1% of each pay increase. This will exacerbate the school funding crisis
Our snap poll of NEU members, conducted following the pay announcement, showed strong support for strike action on pay and funding.
Therefore, the national executive has decided to move to formal strike ballot of teacher members in state-funded schools in England on the issues of pay and funding.
Your national executive recommends you vote ‘yes’ to strike action.
When does the ballot open and close?
The ballot will open on 3 October and close on 15 December.
How will I receive my ballot?
Following changes to the law, our ballot will be conducted electronically – your voting link will be sent to your personal email address.
Members whose records indicate a work email address only, will be sent their ballot by post.
What will the ballot question ask?
The ballot will ask ‘Are you prepared to take industrial action to secure an improved pay award which is fully funded and makes significant movement towards pay restoration for teachers and sufficient additional funding to improve working conditions in education.’
Your national executive recommends you vote ‘yes’.
Does industrial action work?
Yes. At a local level we constantly see improvements to working conditions when members stand together against injustice. At a national level, it has only been through strike action – or a strong ballot turnout and the threat of strike action – that we have managed to secure decent pay awards.
Valuing education means valuing educators. This is not a fight based upon simple self-interest: it is a fight for the future of the profession and to save education.
What is the extent of the school funding crisis?
With the pay award not fully funded, schools are being asked to do more with less. After more than a decade of devastating cuts, 74 per cent of schools in England have less funding in real terms than in 2010.
Public expenditure as a percentage of GDP has been on a downward trend since 2010 and is now 4.1 per cent of GDP compared with 5 per cent in the OECD.
How competitive is pay?
Teachers pay has declined by 20 per cent in real terms against RPI inflation since 2010. This has driven a big drop in the comparative value of teacher pay against other professions, hitting teacher living standards and fuelling the teacher recruitment and retention crisis.
The government’s proposed pay increases of 3.5 per cent this year and 3 per cent next year are not enough to provide the significant progress towards a reversal of the pay cuts against inflation.
Pay cuts are education cuts, because they result in teacher shortages that affect the quality of pupils’ education. Investing in educators is essential to save education.
What is happening on workload?
We pushed back successfully on suggestions that the 1,265 hours a year directed time limit could be removed but, alongside inadequate pay, excessive workload and long working hours continue to drive teacher shortages. Better funding for schools is vital to tackling pay and workload problems.
What do I need to do to prepare for the ballot?
We are asking members to ‘save the date’ and be ready to vote on 3 October.
You should also check that your details, particularly your personal email address, are up to date on myNEU by the 14 September.
Who is eligible to vote in the ballot?
Teachers and leaders employed in state-funded primary, secondary and special schools in England are eligible to vote in the ballot.
State-funded schools include community schools (local authority maintained), academies and free schools, foundation, voluntary controlled and aided schools, and grammar schools.
I’m a support staff member, will I be balloted?
No. The NEU national executive has taken the decision not to ballot school support staff members alongside teachers.
Since we held our indicative ballot of school support staff the NJC unions (Unison, GMB and Unite) have accepted the 3.3% national pay award.
Therefore, continuing to ballot NEU support staff members would not have led to a material improvement in that pay award.
I’m a student/trainee, will I be balloted?
Trainee members with an employment contract with their school, academy or local authority (for instance, those on teaching degree apprenticeships, or the salaried route of the School Direct programme and Teach First programme) will be balloted. Other student/trainee teachers will not be balloted because they are not employed by a school, academy or local authority.
I’m an ECT, will I be balloted?
If you’re an ECT in England, working in a state funded school, you will be balloted.
I’m a centrally employed teacher, will I be balloted?
Yes. If you are a teacher employed directly by a local authority in England, you are included in the ballot. However, if you are employed on Soulbury terms you will not be balloted as pay for Soulbury officers is negotiated separately. For the latest details about our Soulbury negotiations, including on pay, please click here.
I am currently on maternity leave, will I be balloted?
If you will be on maternity leave when the Union is likely to take the first day of action, you will not be included in the formal ballot. This is because we can only ballot those members who we can reasonably expect to call on to take strike action.
I’m a supply teacher, will I be balloted?
Your ability to be balloted will depend on your hirer. Supply staff engaged in a school via agencies cannot be included in a national ballot, because the trade dispute will be with the end-hirer (i.e. the school at which the supply staff member is working) rather than the agency through whom they are contracted. However, if you are employed directly by a local authority, school or academy in England you are eligible to vote in the ballot. Please ensure your workplace details are up to date via My NEU.
I work in an FE college, will I be balloted?
No, pay is negotiated separately for staff working in FE colleges and they are therefore not part of this dispute. While a pay recommendation for colleges is negotiated with the Association of Colleges annually, this is a non-binding recommendation and so, in practice, most college pay awards are negotiated locally. For further details on FE pay see here.
I work in a designated sixth form college or academised sixth form college and I am employed on Red Book terms, will I be balloted?
No, pay is negotiated separately for teaching staff employed on Red Book terms, working in designated sixth form colleges or academised sixth form colleges and they are therefore not part of this dispute. Pay is negotiated annually through the National Joint Council collective bargaining process with the Sixth Form Colleges Association, with further details on sixth form college pay available here.
I work in an independent school, will I be balloted?
No, if your main place of work is an independent school you are not part of this dispute and therefore will not be balloted. However, all NEU workplace groups in the independent sector are encouraged to make an annual pay claim, regardless of whether they have trade union recognition. Further guidance on submitting a pay claim is available on our website Making a pay claim. The NEU will ballot members in independent schools in support of a pay claim where majority support for a ballot can be demonstrated. For further advice contact [email protected]