Leeds Pan Central play NUT Strike

Well, there's two good reasons for teachers and education workers to have one union.

1. The education system of the UK is in very very dire straits. It is ruining the present and future lives of a whole generation of UK school students who are losing this one chance, their only chance to explore themselves through the protection and informed support of our educationalists.

It started with an idea on the back of an envelope from Andrew Adonis and Tony Blair; it was warmly received and endorsed by Ed Balls, and then by Gove and Morgan. I accuse these five people of extreme abuse of power, in complete disproportion to their educational knowledge. And this generation of schoolkids has been asked to learn only the chosen and partial facts that uninformed ministers choose for them. If all teachers and other education workers went on strike at the same time, we would make the point much more forcibly, and achieve our aims without prolonged disruption.

2. Leeds Pan Central would be a bigger band on these very important occasions.

Anyway, as it turned out, we had a good turn out. From Foxwood Steel there were me, Charlotte, Katie, YiBai, Holly, Georgia G1, and later, Fehmina [blissfully unaware we had a gig, and on her way to work]; from East Steel we had Pippa, Wanda, Lynn,  Emma, Chloe; from Sparrows Georgia G2.

Wanda brought the Oultonettes percussionists, and other old friends [eg Fred] appeared and shook a tambourine or two. We got more than our usual 3 seconds on the tele. Yay.


A good way to deliver a serious message.

We nearly didn't make it to Liverpool

Dear Debs

the tyre came to an end at the side of the M62

I enjoy the challenge of teaching offenders, young or old, in a PRU or a secure mental health unit, or wherever. You may remember when we did a gig in the Wakefield Secure Unit, and you all said we shouldn't play "Mad World". Well, I also taught there for a while. Their education officer was a neighbour of mine, whose tragic life ended two years ago in a house fire on our back street.

My experience of working with this wonderful and imaginative woman was the difficulties she faced not just with the inmates, but with her colleagues, who did not altogether support her various initiatives. Such is the unprofessionalism sometimes, of the professions. 

But not at all these wonderful people whom I met in Manchester and Liverpool.

Anyway, Debs, having done a stint in Manchester last month with TIPP [Theatre in prisons] I was invited to do it again in Liverpool. Well that's my home town, and my university town. What could stop me?


Debs, the tyre on the M62 nearly did.

Anyway, after Rick safely got us onto the hard shoulder [and thank goodness there still was one at this point of the M62], I stopped being worried about life itself, and started to irritated about being wet, getting my suede shoes wet, and being late.

The tyre repair man was cheerful, helpful and efficient.

We got to Knotty Ash 40 minutes late, having started off 90 minutes early! The Liverpool staff were as supportive and on the ball as the Manchester ones, so, despite this shaky start, we played our tunes, and ended, by request, with Rivers of Babylon, for which I played the tune quite badly.

Foxwod Steel, 2 Sparrows and 1 East Steel rock the Teachers' Strike

So, Debs,
Michael, the Bear of Immensely Small Brain has achieved this one thing: getting the NUT and the NAS/UWT out on strike together.

Getting a band together on a Tuesday proved more difficult. The drummers were either at work, or one-handed, but, at last, one thousand drummers later, Bart is our knight in shining armour.

Not only that, he had his own drum-kit and a car. Well, Debs, surely that's beyond the call of duty! [Perhaps he has heard that we forget drum stools, bass pedals, or, as in Harrogate on Saturday, cymbals!]

















Anyway, not that you really see us behind the massive crowd of teachers and fellow-workers, but in the end we were me, Bex, Natalie, Katie, Austin [who had only nipped out from work when he saw us, and who needs to playing again with us], Vicky, Georgia 1, Georgia 2, Chloe , Bart and a very surprised Wanda, who had come down with her tambourine and found herself on bass. Also Harvey was there in his Foxwood t shirt  and tambourine at the ready. [And also thanks to Rosie, the surprise[d] photographer]

As we are packing up after the march set off, Bart is doing wheelies on wheelchair, and while carrying half a ton of drum-kit. Rock n Roll, eh?



And at the 1, 6 and 56 bus stop going home I see the sign up - "Delays possible owing to demonstration" Excellent. The screen kept moving so this is all I managed to get of the sign.