Educational psychologists to strike following ‘astounding’ U-turn by employers
The trade union for educational psychologists has accused council employers of ‘inexplicably’ withdrawing an improved pay offer that had staved off strike action.
The Association of Educational Psychologists (AEP) said the Local Government Association’s (LGA) decision to withdraw the pay offer made on 11th September meant the union would now organise strike action in the majority of local authorities in England and Wales.
Councils in England have struggled to recruit and retain sufficient educational psychologists in recent years, contributing to delays in completing assessments for education, health and care plans for children with special needs. Shortages of educational psychologists are a recurring feature of complaints to the Local Government Ombudsman concerning special needs education.
‘Two weeks ago the LGA made an improved pay offer which we were going to recommend that our members accepted. In seeking confirmation of the details, we were stunned to receive a further letter, inexplicably withdrawing the improved offer and taking us back to square one,’ said Dr Cath Lowter, general secretary of the AEP.
‘The LGA are again now offering just 3% at a time when inflation is running at over 10% and many of our members are struggling to pay their bills. This amounts to a real terms cut in pay and will compound the recruitment and retention crisis in our profession which has seen spiralling workloads and long wait times for children, young people and families who need support.
‘Every year, tens of thousands of children and young people and their families are helped by an educational psychologist (EP). Despite the vital services and support provided by EPs, local authorities have not invested in the profession and now face widespread recruitment and retention problems. The resulting rise in EP workloads means that children and young people are waiting far too long to be seen by an EP – or worse, don’t get to see an EP at all.
‘Earlier this month, we believed that employers were finally making a commitment to stem the workforce exodus and ensure our children have access to the specialist support that EPs offer, when they need it. The astounding and deeply disappointing U-turn leaves us with no choice but to take strike action to save our services.’
Strike action is being planned to take place in November and December, with dates to be confirmed and notified to local authority employers.
The AEP held a ballot on strike action in each council area which closed on 8th September. Members in 87% of local authorities met the participation threshold for the ballot and voted in favour of industrial action, with members in 33 of these authorities voting 100% in favour of taking strike action.
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