NEU strike at Connaught School for Girls Waltham Forest 2026

Key Points

• Eleven national trade‑union leaders have condemned the use of agency staff by school management at Connaught School for Girls in Waltham Forest, east London, calling it strike‑breaking.
• The National Education Union (NEU) members at Connaught began a two‑week strike on 21 April 2026 over restructuring plans, potential redundancies, and what they describe as unfair managerial practices.
• According to the Strike Map solidarity group, the school is facing “huge cuts and redundancies,” including the possible redundancy of the NEU branch rep, who is also the joint branch secretary for Waltham Forest NEU.
• Management started bringing in agency workers from Tradewind Recruitment on 22 April 2026 and, as of Wednesday, were still using them to cover for striking staff.
• The letter of solidarity was signed by leaders including Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote, and IWGB’s Henry Chago Lopez, among others.
• Bfawu general secretary Sarah Woolley stated that using agency staff to undermine strike action “cannot be tolerated.”
• FBU general secretary Steve Wright said the struggle is one for all trade unionists, adding that “supporting striking workers is the job of the whole trade union movement.”
• NEU joint branch secretary Pablo Phillips said the dispute is not just a Waltham Forest NEU issue but “an issue for the whole movement.”
• Henry Fowler, co‑founder of Strike Map, said the movement is coming together to resist strike‑breaking and that trade unionists plan to visit Tradewind’s premises to demand the company stop supplying agency staff during the walkout.
• The NEU‑led strikes are scheduled to continue every day until Friday 8 May.

Waltham Forest (East London Times) April 30, 2026 National Education Union (NEU) members at Connaught School for Girls have ramped up industrial action in the latest chapter of a dispute over restructuring and alleged unfair treatment of union representatives, while management counter the walkout by bringing in agency staff from Tradewind Recruitment. As reported by Socialist Worker, the strike began on 21 April with NEU members walking out over plans they say would lead to “huge cuts and redundancies,” including the potential redundancy of their union rep, who is also the joint branch secretary for Waltham Forest NEU.

The dispute has escalated into a wider labour‑movement issue after eleven national trade‑union leaders issued a joint letter in solidarity with the striking staff, explicitly condemning the use of agency staff to cover for strikers. According to the Strike Map solidarity group, which coordinated the letter, Connaught School for Girls is at the centre of a battle over working conditions and the right to collective action, with management turning to external agencies to keep the school running during the walk‑out.

What is driving the strike at Connaught School?

As reported by Socialist Worker, NEU members at Connaught School for Girls argue that the current management is pursuing a “restructuring” agenda that threatens secure jobs and undermines union representation.

The union has framed the strike as a defence of both wages and conditions and of the union’s role within the school, warning that the proposed changes could lead to significant redundancies.

The Strike Map statement notes that the contested restructuring would affect multiple staff, and that the union rep at the school – also the joint branch secretary for Waltham Forest NEU – faces possible redundancy, which has sharpened staff concerns about the management’s attitude towards union activity. NEU members have also pointed to perceived failures in leadership and what they describe as excessive workload and managerial pressure, which they say have contributed to the decision to strike.

How are agency staff involved in the dispute?

According to Socialist Worker, management at Connaught School for Girls began bringing in agency staff supplied by Tradewind Recruitment on 22 April to cover for striking NEU members.

The union and its allies have labelled this move strike‑breaking, arguing that using temporary agency workers during an official industrial action undermines the effectiveness of the walk‑out and sends a signal to other schools about how management intends to handle future disputes.

The Strike Map solidarity letter highlights that the continued use of agency staff has turned the dispute into a test case for wider trade‑union rights, with national union leaders weighing in to support the school staff. Critics of the practice argue that bringing in external workers weakens the leverage of striking staff and may erode the principle that workers’ collective action should be respected rather than circumvented.

Why are national trade‑union leaders getting involved?

The solidarity letter, coordinated by Strike Map, has been signed by prominent trade‑union figures including Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote, and Henry Chago Lopez of the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB).

Their intervention underscores how the dispute at Connaught is being framed as part of a broader fight over the right to strike and the use of agency staff in industrial action.

As reported by Socialist Worker, Bfawu general secretary Sarah Woolley said her union was

“proud to be supporting our brothers and sisters in the NEU,”

adding that the use of agency staff to undermine strike action “cannot be tolerated.” Fire Brigades Union (FBU) general secretary Steve Wright said the struggle at Connaught is relevant to all trade unionists, stating, “Supporting striking workers is the job of the whole trade union movement,” and emphasising that

“solidarity is fundamental to what makes our unions powerful.”

How are strikers and supporters responding?

Pablo Phillips, NEU joint branch secretary for Waltham Forest, said the dispute is not just local to Connaught or Waltham Forest but

“an issue for the whole movement,”

which is why the national letter of solidarity matters. He argued that if bosses can use agency workers to run down a strike at one school, the precedent could spread to other workplaces where unions are engaged in pay or conditions disputes.

Henry Fowler, co‑founder of Strike Map, said the group is

“proud to stand with staff at Connaught School for Girls and to see the movement come together to resist strike‑breaking.”

As Socialist Worker reports, trade unionists are planning to visit Tradewind’s premises on Thursday morning to demand the agency stop supplying staff during the strike, and to call on the company to cease what they describe as “scabbing” in favour of respecting the strike.

What is the current timeline of the action?

The NEU‑led strike at Connaught School for Girls has been running every day since 21 April and is scheduled to continue until Friday 8 May. During that period, striking staff have been holding picket lines outside the school in Leytonstone, with support from other union members and campaigners.

The Strike Map statement urges trade unionists and campaigners to “shower the picket lines in solidarity,” saying that visible support at the school helps justify the national letter and reinforces the message that strike‑breaking will not be accepted.

As the walk‑out continues, attention is likely to remain on how the school’s management and Tradewind respond to the pressure from union leaders and local activists.

Background: The context of the dispute at Connaught

The current strike at Connaught School for Girls is not the first major industrial dispute at the school. As reported by Waltham Forest Echo, NEU staff at the school went on strike in 2023 over proposals to transfer the school to the Star Academies multi‑academy trust, in a campaign that lasted several days and involved multiple strike days if talks did not yield a satisfactory outcome.

Past industrial action at Connaught has often centred on concerns about management changes, the stability of employment, and the perceived marginalisation of union voices within the school. These earlier walk‑outs helped to cement the school as a key site of labour‑movement activity in east London, with union members often highlighting the importance of solidarity across boroughs and trusts.

At a broader level, the dispute also unfolds against a backdrop of legal rulings in the UK on the use of agency workers during strikes. In 2023, the High Court ruled that government regulations allowing employers to use agency staff to cover for striking workers were unlawful, overturning a move unions had condemned as strike‑breaking.

The court’s decision reinforced limits on how far employers can go in using temporary staff to bypass industrial action, a precedent that has since been cited by trade unions in campaigns like the one at Connaught School for Girls.

Prediction: How this development could affect the particular audience

For parents of students at Connaught School for Girls and in Waltham Forest more broadly, the ongoing strike and the use of agency staff may mean continued disruption to school routines, at least until the dispute is resolved or the next tranche of industrial action ends on 8 May. The involvement of national union leaders could also raise public awareness of the dispute, potentially influencing how families frame the walk‑out in terms of workers’ rights versus school‑community impact.

For other NEU members and trade unionists in east London, the case at Connaught may serve as a reference point for how to respond if management at other schools or workplaces attempt to use agency staff during strikes. The solidarity letter and the planned visit to Tradewind could encourage similar joint‑union campaigns elsewhere, reinforcing the idea that resistance to strike‑breaking is a shared priority across the labour movement.