Parents upset at having to find alternative care for their children on Wednesday have been warned that the 'future education' of their children is at stake.
Thousands of teachers across Swindon and Wiltshire will be joining in on a day of national strike action on Wednesday, February 1, in a row over pay.
Because schools have been unable to guarantee minimum staffing levels, many have made the decision to inform parents of closures in advance of the day itself, with Dorcan Academy being one of them.
Read More: Latest on school closures ahead of teacher's strike
In a letter to parents, the school's head teacher Sherryl Bareham explained that only year 11 and vulnerable students would be able to attend in person, with everyone else set to learn online, or revise.
"I am writing to inform you of our initial plans for the strike days. At The Dorcan Academy we have 33 teachers in the NEU which means that, if they all chose to take strike action we would not be able to open the school to all students and provide a safe learning environment.
"Teachers are not obliged to inform the school whether or not they are taking part and, therefore, we have to plan in advance as though they are; in addition, other teachers are not obliged to provide cover or set remote learning for their striking colleagues.
"For this reason, on the dates above, we are planning to open school for our most vulnerable students only (who will be contacted in advance to offer a place) and our Year 11 cohort, to minimise as far as possible any disruption to their exam preparations."
But while Mrs Bareham noted that the strikes would be 'inconvenient to parents and potentially damaging to children’s education,' she also said that teachers at Dorcan wanted to 'make a stand'.
She said: "Whilst we know that teachers striking is inconvenient to parents and potentially damaging to children’s education, the teachers at Dorcan wish to make a stand against the largely unfunded teachers’ pay rise which has left our finances in a critical position.
"If left unresolved this will severely impact our ability to recruit and retain the best staff and continue to provide a broad and balanced curriculum with extra-curricular opportunities for all students. The future education of our children is at stake."
Wednesday, February 1, is just the first of seven strike days planned, with strikes on March 2, and March 15 and 16 set to impact the south west also.
If your school has been affected by the strike action and is closing or partially closing on Wednesday, we want to hear from you.
Please email daniel.wood@newsquest.co.uk.
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