The NEU, which has 300,000 members, is likely to have reached the threshold of 80 per cent of those who took part in the ballot voting in favour of action. A second union, the National Association of Head Teachers , may also have reached the threshold.
Mary Bousted, General Secretary of the NEU, told Times Radio: “I’m confident based on our own internal surveys of our membership, that we will reach the ballot threshold, but the only vote that counts is that reported by the independent polling company and we’ll know that just before we make the announcement to the members tomorrow afternoon.
Ms Bousted said the strike action could still be averted, adding: “We’ve got two weeks and look, we’ll stop whatever we’re doing, we’ll get into the Department of Education and we’ll negotiate, of course we will. Our members don’t want to take strike action, they have been driven to it by government neglect to the education service, and by so many teachers walking away from the profession.”