Two-school academy trust bidding to cut teaching assistant pay by "up to £4,000 per year" – despite reserves of nearly £4 million

Strike action at Woodfield School, run by Compass Learning Partnership, which also spent more than £1.35 million on “key management personnel” in 2023-24.

Union members at a special school in North London will enter their ninth day of strike action this week – over moves by the academy trust running it to cut the hours, and therefore pay, of lowly-paid teaching assistants.

The Compass Learning Partnership is planning to reduce the hours of learning support assistants at Woodfield School in Brent, cutting the time they work before pupils arrive and after they leave, so that they will end up losing £2-£4,000 a year, says the National Education Union.

The move comes despite the trust, which runs only two schools, having four people paid at least £100,000 in 2023-24; spending £1.35 million on “key management personnel”; renting offices away from the schools which the union says appear expensive; and having nearly £4 million in its reserves as of last year.

The trust has said that it recognises the concerns raised and that “any proposals under consideration are driven by the need to ensure long-term financial sustainability while continuing to deliver high-quality education for all learners”.