by Newham and East London Socialist Party
Striking workers at Avenue Primary School are fighting job cuts in Newham, East London. Student numbers have dropped but redundancies go beyond safe levels.
Management announced 21 support staff cuts without warning or consultation. The National Education Union (NEU) is demanding no compulsory redundancies and retaining sufficient posts.
Photo: Socialist Party
Socialist Party member and Avenue teacher Louise Cuffaro, NEU district secretary and National Executive member, is leading vibrant, noisy picket lines of staff and parents. Strikers have taken eight days of action with at least two more upcoming, as we go to press.
Austerity and inflation have made London increasingly unaffordable for the whole working class. ‘Falling rolls’ in schools, as families move further out, mean less funding for those still here. Local authorities could fight to defend funding and improve the staff-to-student ratio. Instead, London boroughs have been slashing jobs and closing schools.
Labour council
So where are Newham’s Labour mayor and council? Avenue is still controlled by the local authority, after a bitter strike beat academy privatisation in 2018. The NEU is demanding they intervene to settle the dispute, supporting the union’s position that workers and parents decide on staffing levels.
Newham Council is in financial crisis after accepting years of austerity without resistance, but has just won £67.2 million in ‘exceptional financial support’. This was part of £2.68 billion across 30 councils the Labour government announced in February.
So the money is there if fought for! If local Labour politicians aren’t prepared to stand up, they should face political challenge by trade unionists and community campaigners like those at Avenue.
All seats in London boroughs are up for election in May 2026. The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition, an electoral alliance including the Socialist Party, is open to all who want to stand against austerity and privatisation.