Union claims Cathedral Schools Trust CEO ‘confused’ over strike action

An education union in Bristol claims the Cathedral School Trust’s CEO suggested he didn’t even know what his support staff were striking over during negotiations yesterday.

Sheila Caffrey from the National Education Union (NEU) revealed unions met with the trust’s CEO to discuss back pay demands following two days of strike action across 12 Bristol schools this week.

She claimed the CEO was dismissive of the negotiations, saying: “He said there was nothing on offer at all, and he was still very confused and didn’t know what people were even asking for.”

The dispute arose over support staff claiming they are owed hundreds of pounds worth of back pay due to CST withholding pay rises for five months of each year.

Pay rises are negotiated in April aligned with the financial year yet were only being implemented each September, Unison claimed.

This week’s strikes saw teaching assistants, administrators, librarians, finance officers, caretakers and caterers walkout. They were accompanied by teachers and students with all 12 schools forced to close on Wednesday.

On the picket line at Cathedral Primary School, a learning support assistant named Fran said she was striking “to get back the money that I am owed by the trust”.

“I feel, and other people feel, that they’ve stolen from us,” she added. She emphasised how support staff are the lowest paid in the schools and therefore are the worst affected by withheld pay increases.

Jen Clarke works in pastoral care at Cathedral Primary School: “It’s an important stand because schools are really important- our children are really important.

“To support our children we need to have staff who have been paid properly and not disrespected by their leaders.”

She has two children of her own and said the underpayment “affects every part of her life” and that she “struggles financially”.

Privileged to be touring picket lines across Bristol this morning with our exec members, Michaela and Sheila.

Our support staff members are taking action at Cathedral Schools Trust alongside Unison over the issue of pay.

Our members here have only received a partial amount of… pic.twitter.com/XHotwpXUTw

— Daniel Kebede (@DanielKebedeNEU) November 6, 2025

“Nobody likes being paid in hugs and nods,” explained Christof, who works at Bristol Cathedral Choir School.

He works with children who would otherwise struggle in mainstream education, such as neurodivergent students or refugees who have English as an additional language.

“It kind of needs to be acknowledged that when you are support staff you are not on a very high pay scale and the work you do might be quite demanding,” he added.

The Green Councillor of Hotwells and Harbourside, Patrick McAllister, attended Bristol Cathedral Choir School’s picket on behalf of Bristol Central MP Carla Denyer.

“As your Green MP, I am proud to support workers in the face of exploitation. The situation that support staff at Cathedral Schools Trust have been pushed into by the academy trust management is shameful. Hundreds and thousands of pounds lost over years,” said Cllr McAllister in a speech on behalf of Denyer.

A spokesperson from the CST said, “To support colleagues, the trust has made significant financial commitments, but we must also protect school budgets to ensure we can continue delivering the high-quality education our young people deserve.

“We are continuing to work proactively with the unions to resolve this as soon as possible, and our focus remains on supporting our schools to minimise disruption and maintain the best possible learning experience for our pupils and families.”

NEU have confirmed upcoming strike dates of the 11th, 12th, 18th, 19th and 20th of November.