UNION leaders demanded a recruitment firm “immediately cease supplying” scabbing staff to a school in east London where National Education Union (NEU) members are currently on strike.

They joined a protest today outside the headquarters of Tradewind UK, which was hired by the Connaught School for Girls to replace striking staff.

NEU members started their strike last Tuesday, which will run until May 8, following a dispute over budget cuts and redundancies, which have also affected their workplace representative.

NEU general secretary Daniel Kebede attended the picket in central London, where the Tradewind headquarters are located.

The demonstration coincided with the publication of an open letter addressed to the recruitment firm calling on it to “reconsider [its] position and immediately cease supplying staff to the school for the duration of the strike.”

It was signed by trade union leaders including Mr Kebede, FBU general secretary Steve Wright, Unite leader Sharon Graham, GFTU’s Gawain Little, IWGB’s Henry Chango Lopez and the PCS’s Fran Heathcote.

They wrote: “We understand that your agency is currently supplying staff to the school during this period of strike action.

“This has the effect of undermining a legitimate and important dispute driven by serious concerns, including significant budget cuts and redundancies, including the NEU workplace representative.

“NEU members have taken this action as a last resort. In this context, the provision of agency staff to cover striking workers weakens the integrity of the process and prolongs the dispute.

“We believe it is inappropriate for public funds to be used in a way that undermines dedicated educators advocating for fair working conditions and the future of their school community.”

Strikemap and the NEU called for members of the public to join a letter-writing campaign last week, asking Tradewind to stop supplying staff to the school.

The Connaught School for Girls has been contacted for comment.