Emergency nannies are being snapped up as parents struggle to make last minute childcare arrangements ahead of the first major teachers’ strike in 20 years this Thursday.

Thousands of schools in England and Wales are expected to close fully or partially in response to the strike by members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), who argue that their 2.45 per cent pay settlement for next year will leave them out of pocket. The strikers are expected to include Nicky Blair, the 21-year-old son of the former prime minister, who teaches at a West Midlands school.

Emergencychildcare.co.uk, the biggest supplier of UK wide temporary nannies, childminders and nursery places, said there had been a five fold increase in enquiries for temporary childcare on the day of the strike.

Most are from working parents who have not been able to take time off from work or find friends or family to look after their children. Almost two thirds of the 25,000 schools in England and Wales will only have returned from their spring break this week and many parents who took time off during the holidays will struggle to get another day off at such short notice.

Ben Black, founder of emergencychildcare.co.uk, said: “We have already booked more than 150 nannies for Thursday – double the usual number in term time as well as having the significant increase in traffic to our website looking at availability. We are expecting more bookings in the 24 hours leading up to the strike as we are able to take bookings as close as one hour before the childcare is required.

Although most GCSE and A Level exams do not start until May there are concerns that revision classes may be disrupted by the strike. The OCR exam board has two Art A level papers scheduled for the day after the strike. A number of schools in Wales have had to reschedule internal assessments, originally planned for the day of the strike.

Ivan Ould, chairman of National Employers’ Organisation for School Teachers (NEOST), which represents children's services authorities and local education authorities in England and Wales, said he was disappointed that the NUT was pressing ahead with its strike, which is not supported by the four other major teaching unions.

"Children so close to their exams will lose out on invaluable study time and parents will lose out as they are forced to take unnecessary holiday to look after them," he said.

The employers also warned heads that they could be breaking the legal regulations on agency workers if they hire supply staff to provide cover for Thursday’s teachers’ strike.

In his first comments on the strike Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, said that in the current climate of economic uncertainty, it the NUT’s demands were irresponsible

"I am disappointed by the what is happening although I think my disappointment will be matched by that of parents across the country," he told The Times.

Teachers’ pay has increased by 19 per cent in real terms since 1997. An experienced teacher in England and Wales at the top of the pay scale in 1997 received £21,318. Today they would be on £34,281. In inner London the same teacher would have received £23,379 in 1997 and £41,004 now, a real terms increase of 36 per cent.

But the NUT argues that with the retail price index running at 3.8 per cent, the settlement represents a pay cut.

Few secondaries are expected to close completely, but many will be partly closed. Significant numbers of primary schools may be affected, although numbers will vary throughout the country.

In Wandsworth, South West London, just five of the borough’s 85 schools are closing completely. In Suffolk 45 schools will close completely and 38 partly.

In Surrey there are expected to be 14 full and 47 partial closures, while in Brighton the figures will be 28 and six respectively.

Among the strikers is expected to be Tony Blair's son, Nicky, who is teaching at a comprehensive school in the West Midlands under the Teach First scheme, which aims to place talented graduates in inner-city schools. Having graduated from Oxford University last year with a modern history degree, he, like all on the scheme, receives a relatively modest salary of £17,800, rising to £22,000 in the second year.

It is not the first time Nicky Blair has found himself in opposition to the policies of his father. More liberal than either of his parents, as chair of Oxford University Labour Group he condemned the Blair government's asylum and immigration policy as inhumane and undignified, and campaigned for the closure of a controversial refugee detention centre.

He is also expected to join a rally in Birmingham to demand better pay.

Joining the NUT members will be some of the 27,500 lecturers from the University and College Union, who are also striking over pay. Up to 100,000 civil servants are also striking on the same day over a two per cent public sector pay cap.

Although only one in four NUT members voted for the strike, a much larger number of the union’s 243,000 members are expected to support the action.

For many NUT members the strike will become a memorial to their general secretary, Steve Sinnott, who died unexpectedly two weeks ago. Thousands of NUT members are expected to take part in 47 rallies around the country on the day of the strike, but there will be no pickets outside school gates.

Are you a teacher or parent affected by the strike? Will your school close? Email your comments to: gug@thetimes.co.uk

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