Your right to union representation is under threat

Redbridge Council is attempting to cut the time that allows union officers to represent you.

This affects every NEU member in Redbridge — over 2,500 of you.

When you face a disciplinary hearing, a grievance, a capability process or a redundancy consultation, you have the right to union representation. That representation depends on officers having protected time to do their jobs.

London Borough of Redbridge - a Labour council - is making a significant cut to the "Release Time" union officers have to represent members in formal meetings.

If you work in a Redbridge school and you believe your colleagues deserve proper representation when it matters most, add your name to the letter below.

Sign the letter now

Letter to Redbridge Local Authority from education workers across the borough.

July 2026

1- We support Redbridge children and families; we hold our schools together. We are writing because London Borough of Redbridge (LBR) is attempting to quietly remove the right to proper union representation for school teachers and support staff.

2- LBR is making a significant cut to the time union officers have to represent members in formal meetings, such as sickness absences, disciplinary, or redundancy consultations.

3- If you are called into one of these meetings, you are entitled to have a union representative with you. A direct consequence of this cut will be that members will find themselves walking into a formal meeting alone with management.

4- This cut has not been negotiated; it has been imposed in the penultimate week of the school year, This is a deliberate strategy to weaken the union.

5- We are deeply concerned that the NEU - the largest education union in Redbridge - is the only union being targeted by these cuts.

6- NEU membership has grown significantly in Redbridge in recent years. We have consistently argued that Release Time for officers should be increased to ensure members receive the support and representation they need.

7- We call upon LBR to honour the existing Release Time agreement that has been in place for the past seven years. We strongly oppose any cut to our officers' release time that would jeopardise our legal entitlement to union representation.

8- We commit to further escalation should the issue remain unresolved.

Sign the letter now