Headline: England Schools Get Extra £500m as Government Seeks to Avoid Teachers’ Strike

Date: 16 September 2026

Tags: Education, Teachers, Pay, UK Politics

Summary:

• Schools in England will receive around £500 million in additional funding towards teachers’ pay during the current school year.

• The funding reduces pressure on schools to finance the 3.5% teacher pay increase from existing budgets.

• The government will fund the increase through savings from lower employer contributions to the local government pension scheme.

• Employer pension contributions are expected to fall by 4.9 percentage points, reducing schools’ support-staff costs.

• Teachers received a 3.5% pay increase from September 2026, with another 3% increase planned next year.

• Government had already provided an additional £700 million for 2026-27 and £1.1 billion for the following year.

• The Institute for Fiscal Studies previously estimated schools faced a funding shortfall of around 1% against rising costs this year.

• National Education Union leader Daniel Kebede described the additional funding as a significant development in negotiations.

• An April indicative ballot found 90% of participating NEU teachers were prepared to take industrial action over funding and pay.

• The NEU executive will meet on 24 September to decide whether to cancel its planned formal strike ballot.

Why this matters: The additional funding could ease pressure on school budgets and reduce the likelihood of teacher strikes in early 2027.

What’s next: The NEU will decide on 24 September whether its formal strike ballot, scheduled to begin on 3 October, should proceed.