Conference Q&A - NASUWT
Chris Weavers from the NASUWT tells ePolitix.com about the union's priorities at the Labour party conference in Manchester.
ePolitix.com: What are the key messages you want to get out this year at the party conferences?
Chris Weavers: There are a number of messages. First there is our alternative message about how to deal with the deficit, that needs to be done in a progressive and socially just way.
We are very unhappy with what is happening in education, in terms of the government's cuts to the Building Schools for the Future programme, the cuts to various agencies who are crucial to delivering high-quality education.
On the horizon are threats to teachers' pay and conditions, there is a lot going on in education at the moment and very little of it is good.
What are the most common questions delegates ask you?
Overwhelmingly they want to talk about the cuts and the impact they will have on local services, or around the academies and free schools proposals.
We have had hundreds of governors, this week alone, coming up to us asking for advice on how they can prevent their schools becoming academies, how they can try and stop free schools emerging in their area.
There are real fears about widening the gap in attainment between the haves and the have nots and the idea that free schools are just a charter for the pushy and the privileged.
What are the benefits of coming to conference?
For us, as well as the engagement we get with national political figures, there is also the fact that we can talk to thousands of councillors and school governors, who have a huge role to play in the delivery of education and a huge impact on the working lives of our members.
At conference, we get to talk to a much wider audience.
Have your say...
Please enter your comments below.