Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of schools impacted by strike action during the (a) GCSE and (b) A-level exam period.

There is currently no national industrial action taking place in schools. There is no requirement for schools to report instances of local industrial action in schools and the department does not collect data on local strike action.

The department’s guidance ‘Handling strike action in schools’ makes clear that headteachers should take all reasonable steps to keep schools open for as many pupils as possible and minimise disruption to their education. In the event of industrial action during public exams, it is recommended that schools should remain open for exams and exam candidates where possible, even if the school is closed or restricting attendance.

Headteachers remain accountable for the conduct of the exams and provision of facilities in their centre, and schools are encouraged to review contingency plans well in advance of each exam or assessment series. The full guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6523d331aea2d0000d2199bf/Handling_strike_action_in_schools.pdf.