When education takes a stand
The voices behind the Bournemouth and Poole College strikes
Striking up support
Earlier this week, on Wednesday 14th January, staff from 25 colleges across England started a three-day strike after college bosses refused to make fair offers and changes to pay and working conditions (UCU, University and College Union).
Striking is not unheard of within the world of education, with over 65,000 UCU members at university being balloted to take strike on Monday 20th October in 2025. The need to strike comes when all other hope is lost and there is simply no ultimatum. In some cases, staff cannot afford to strike due to the wages they are being paid, the lost hours could prove severely costly financially. The issue is that serious.
Data from The Official for National Statistics shows that 1,858,000 working days being lost due to striking action in 2024.
Staff have been at picket lines over the past three days and here in Bournemouth, staff from Bournemouth and Poole College's Lansdowne and North Road Campus' have been displaying their dissatisfaction with their treatment.
The UCU is the largest trade union for academic staff in the UK | Credit: Sam McShane
The UCU is the largest trade union for academic staff in the UK | Credit: Sam McShane
Infographic by Sam McShane
Infographic by Sam McShane
Experiences and voices
Ivan Darley, member of the UCU and maths teacher at Bournemouth and Poole College, stated that there is a "massive disparity" when it comes to the pay of college and university staff compared to their counterparts in other leagues of education and is looking for "a fair-pay deal" with his executives.
Ivan has been at Bournemouth and Poole College for 25 years and has been on strike in 2012 but states that "very little has changed" since then and hopes that minor increments can turn into resounding change.
"FE (further education) staff are known to be roughly 9% behind schoolteaching but we have all of the same qualifications," he said.
According to data from GOV.UK, the average annual salary for a schoolteacher is around £49,000 whilst further education teachers are behind with an average annual salary of £47,000.
Ivan went on to describe the workload in further education as "incomparable" to that of schools and said that some of the staff at his college have to go to food banks due to the lack of sufficient pay.
He emphasised that the strikes are "a last resort" as he, alongside other members of the UCU, cannot make a breakthrough on "a reasonable, fair pay scale."
The sector of further education differ drastically from that of primary and secondary education. In many cases, each establishment ultimately runs on it's own merit with CEO's and executives often having much more of a free hand to distribute budgets and college income to other areas and projects.
Ivan's "frustration", alongside other members of the UCU, came when Brockenhurst College negotiated a 4.5% pay rise after other members of the UCU negotiated better terms for their staff.
"If we just sit and do nothing, then nothing will happen, nothing will change. And we do need change," he said.
Ivan stated that the next steps are down to the Chief Executive and the Executive Committee and says that he has put his point across in "a passive and peaceful way."
Anne Marie Moriarty, Vice Chair and Secretary of Bournemouth and Poole College said that she is on strike because she is "overworked" and feels the further education sector needs "national pay bargaining".
Further education staff are tasked with excessive and unhealthy workloads due to the lack of effective national agreements on working hours and planning, preparation and assessment (PPA).
After their claims for a pay increase, members were dismissed after nothing concrete was put in place. There was a 3% pay increase in the summer of 2025 however the Association of Colleges (AOC) recommended 4%.
She says that her and the UCU have tried negotiating with management but it was only after the ballot was passed that they would even "sit down and have a conversation" and says that they are making "vague promises" on the future.
"If we stand together we are stronger"
Anne made clear that her and the other UCU members at the college have "no other option" but to come on strike as they have "reached the end of the road with negotiations.
She also explained the fact that a lot of staff would want to go on strike to make their feelings felt but not working for three days would "break them."
She described the staff as 'overworked, underpaid and undervalued" by management and feels that striking is the only way to send a clear and unwavering message.
"We needed to be heard and we have been"
However, Anne is positive about the impact of the strikes stating that "they have raised awareness" and hopes that it shows their executives and management that "whist we really didn't want to do this, it was a last resort."
Anne Marie Moriarty, Vice Chair and Secretary of Bournemouth and Poole College | Credit" Sam McShane
Anne Marie Moriarty, Vice Chair and Secretary of Bournemouth and Poole College | Credit" Sam McShane
The next steps
When asked to comment on the strikes, Bournemouth and Poole College stated that "as a government-funded organisation, we have to work within the constraints of our budget to deliver stability and long-term sustainability."
"We are committed to keeping pay under review and, if funding increases, will evaluate the opportunity to raise it further. We regret that we are not in a position to do this at this time."
Over the next three years, around 60,000 students will venture in further education. However, by that time, 50% of further education staff will have left (UCU).
Despite the strikes, the college and members of the UCU have stressed that the priority above all are their students.
They have made it clear that the reason for the strikes is to provide a formidably better working environment and life for further education staff so that they can give students the best education they can.
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