Schools hit by mass strike

SCHOOLS across Oldham are expected to close on Wednesday as the borough braces itself for one of the biggest public strikes in decades.

Parents will be left to find alternative arrangements as many teachers and staff take part in the national day of action over proposed pension changes.

Bins will be left unemptied as refuse workers join public-sector colleagues as part of the protest.

Scores of other key services across Oldham will be affected with council and health services, job centres and courts making alternative arrangements to cope with the mass walkout.

A spokesman for Oldham Council said it was working hard to mitigate the impact of the industrial action, particularly on the vulnerable.

He said: “Our focus has been on ensuring the continuation of ‘life and limb’ services, such as vital home and social-care visits. Some services, such as day care, will be affected.”

A special web page will be available at www.oldham.gov.uk from Monday which will be regularly updated with the very latest information. Protesters are set to take to Oldham town centre at lunchtime on Wednesday as part of a demonstration organised by the TUC.

Protesters including council workers, teachers, health workers and police staff will begin to assemble in the town centre from noon near to the entrance to Tommyfield Market on Albion Street.

They will then march around the town centre along Albion Street, Curzon Street, High Street and Lord Street.

This will be followed by “One Noise at One” when protesters are being encouraged to make as much noise as possible at precisely 1pm, to draw attention to the Government’s unfair pension changes.

The demonstration is one of many protests planned across the North-West in one of the biggest strikes for a generation.

Demonstrations will also be happening across the North-West at exactly the same time including in Manchester and Liverpool.

Tony Harrison, of Oldham National Union of Teachers, is co-ordinating the Oldham event.

He said: “Public servants are being expected to pay an extra £3billion a year for much worse pensions by a Government that cancelled the bankers’ bonus tax and is obsessed with cutting public services instead.

“They are being told to work longer and pay more — for a lot less. The Government’s so-called compromise offers very little and is a cynical attempt to undermine the action.

“Trade union members have seen through this and it will not work. It’s wrong to make public sector workers pay an unfair contribution to reducing a deficit they did nothing to cause.”

However, it’s business as ususal for many public-sector organisations who are putting plans in place to ensure there is no change in service to Oldham residents during the industrial action.

A spokesman for the Pennine Acute Trust, which runs hospitals in Oldham, Rochdale, Bury and North Manchester, said: “Many patients will be already booked to attend any one of our services.

“Vital services for our patients need to continue so that patients are not rescheduled for some weeks, hence delaying their diagnosis and treatment.

“The trust wishes Wednesday to be a normal working day for all patients while recognising that our staff have the right to strike or otherwise show their support for the industrial action. “We are working through what the unions have told us about staff availability.”

Shauna Dixon, locality director for NHS Oldham, the primary care trust responsible for health services across the borough, said: “We don’t provide any services to the public, so no-one will be directly affected by action any of our staff may choose to take.

“If people need to contact NHS Oldham that day we will still be open for business.”

A spokesman for Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) said it aimed to keep disruption to a minimum.

He said: “HMCTS provides essential services to the public, and our top priority is to ensure public safety. We have robust contingency plans in place which will prioritise the delivery of our most essential services. These include custody ,and urgent family cases.”

A Job Centre spokeswoman said there should be no change to people’s benefits.

She said: “We have business continuity measures in place to deliver and maintain a service for the public. We expect everyone who is entitled to benefits will receive them.”



Council services

Access Oldham
The One-Stop Shop at the civic centre will be open as usual between 9.30am and 5pm.



Contact Centre
The council’s contact centre will be open as usual between 8am and 6pm taking queries about all services. The council may experience a high level of calls and so are thanking users in advance for their patience.



Waste and Recycling
There will be no waste collection on Wednesday, November 30. Anyone whose grey (general waste) bin is due for collection that day, they will be collected from Thursday onwards in addition to normal rounds and should be completed by Saturday, December 3. All other bins (paper, garden, food waste and glass and plastic) will be collected as normal on their next collection day.



Libraries, Museums and Galleries
The Express Library (self-service) within Oldham Library will be open between 9am and 5pm. The Local Studies and Archives centre will also open as usual. All other libraries and Gallery Oldham are expected to be closed.



Registrars
A limited registration service will be available. For appointments call 0161-770 8960.


Leisure Centres
All of our leisure centres should be open as usual.



Markets
Tommyfield Market will be open as usual. The indoor market hall will also be open from 9am to 5.15pm, and the outdoor market from 9am to 3.30pm.


Schools
Many schools will be closed but each school should have communicated directly with parents and guardians prior to the strike action taking place.

For further information on school closures please check the school website.

The latest information and an overview of the latest proposed school and service closures will be available on the Oldham Council website at www.oldham.gov.uk from Monday.