James Ellis

The National Education Union (NEU) held a well-attended demonstration in Wellington Place on Saturday morning (22 March) to support the return to local authority control of six primary and two secondary schools in Hastings currently run by the University of Brighton Academies Trust (UBAT).

Paul McLaughlin
James Ellis is Lead NEU rep for UBAT schools

NEU members who work for schools have been in dispute over the way UBAT has managed its finances and the impact on jobs and workload. Following a request from the trustees, the Department for Education has dissolved the Trust. The NEU is against plans for the schools to join another academy trust, arguing that academies lack accountability and misuse public funds.

The NEU also called on the Government to fund schools properly to make sure they can provide the kind of education students deserve.  


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