STAFF at the Open University (OU) announced dates for its first ever strike yesterday hoping to halt management plans to close down regional centres.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) at the distance learning institution will be walking out on November 25, and then hold a series of actions across local campuses.

OU workers voted for action after the school announced plans to close seven centres placing over 500 jobs at risk.

UCU branch president Pauline Collins said staff felt like they had no alternative but to take action.

She said the staff, students, former students and politicians had all lined up against the closures and even academic chief body the senate had rejected the plans as “high risk and failing to support the mission of the university.”

She said: “The ball is now firmly in the university’s court and we hope they will see sense and reject these plans.”

The strikes will be the first time in history that action is taken by the university’s staff over a local dispute.

The Open University’s Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Gateshead, Leeds, London and Oxford centres are earmarked for closure.

Staff at the sites will take action between November 30 and December 11.

An OU spokeswoman said last week that bosses were aware of the “difficult time” workers were having with the plans and that it wished to work with the unions.

“The proposals to replace seven smaller support centres in England with three larger centres would allow us to invest more in student support,” she claimed.

“Our services to students would be enhanced by these proposals, and no existing services to students will be withdrawn.”