Industrial action at school near Wolverhampton is suspended for more talks
Industrial action at a senior school near Wolverhampton has been suspended for more talks after weeks of disruption.
Some lessons have been run online at Wombourne High School on strike days as a result of the dispute between National Education Union (NEU) members and the Invictus Education Trust over staff wellbeing or directed time working arrangements. Invictus is responsible for running the school and Kinver High School, where strike action was put on hold last month.
A joint statement from the NEU and Invictus Education Trust said: "We appreciate that there has been significant disruption during this time and would like to thank families for their patience and understanding during this period. We are pleased to confirm that significant progress has been made and, as a result, the strike action at Wombourne High School has now been paused.
"This follows the decision by NEU members to pause strike action at Kinver High School earlier this month.
"Looking ahead the trust, the NEU and other recognised unions have agreed to begin early and meaningful negotiations on working time and timetabling for the 2026/27 academic year. Starting this work early will help ensure future arrangements are fair, manageable and consistent across all schools in the trust, while also reflecting the needs of pupils and families.
"By continuing to work together we remain committed to building a positive working environment for employees and and an excellent learning environment for every pupil in Invictus schools."
Parents had complained that their children's education and exam preparations were being affected by the disruption while Kingswinford and South Staffordshire MP Mike Wood said he was disappointed that staff at Wombourne High School had prolonged the action.
Invictus runs five other schools in the Dudley area, Crestwood School in Kingswinford, Pedmore High School and Rufford Primary School in Stourbridge, Ellowes Hall School in Lower Gornal, and Leasowes High School in Halesowen. None of these schools are affected by the strike action.
Invictus chief executive Edward Vitalis said the trust had set up a wellbeing and workforce strategy which was making a difference, coupled with substantial investment to reduce workload. Several Staffordshire schools run by academy trusts have seen strikes in recent months. The county council said it was urging the Government to resolve the issues.
In a separate row over teaching assistant contracts, union GMB has backed long-running strike action at Doxey Academy in Stafford.
