College staff have voted to strike next month in the latest of a series of strikes over pay, the University and College Union (UCU) has announced.

UCU members at colleges in England are expected to take part in the October 14 strike after 85 per cent of those balloted voted to reject a “final” pay offer from the Association of Colleges (AoC).

The union also said it would consider further industrial action if the pay offer, which includes the removal of the lowest pay grade, a 2 per cent rise to £7.65-an-hour for staff on the lowest remaining grade and a 1 per cent rise for all other grades, did not improve.

The proposed deal was better than the 0.7 per cent rise offered in previous talks at the National Joint Forum (NJF), which includes Unison, the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), Amie (ATL’s section for education leaders and managers), Unite and GMB.

However, the UCU has been looking for a 3 per cent rise or £1,040, whichever is the greater.

A UCU spokesperson said: “Our FE committee met on Friday and backed strike action in the pay row. Our members in English colleges will be out on strike on Tuesday, October 14.

“85 per cent of those who took part in our e-ballot voted to reject the 1 per cent pay offer and support strike action in an effort to secure an improved deal.

“The committee voted in favour of the action on October 14 together with other public sector unions and to determine dates for further targeted and national strike action when it next meets on  October 17.”

UCU head of bargaining, Michael MacNeil, said: “Our members have made it quite clear that they are not prepared to accept another real-terms pay cut. The cost of living continues to rise but pay just isn’t matching it.

“Our members have seen their pay fall by 15 per cent in real terms since 2009 and have also been hit with higher monthly pension contributions. We will be joining our colleagues in other public sector unions because Britain needs a pay rise.”

Marc Whitworth, the AoC’s acting director of employment policy and services, said: “With colleges facing significant financial pressures, AoC’s final recommendation of a 1 per cent pay increase, with no conditions, is a fair balance between rewarding staff and maintaining the financial well-being of colleges where possible.

“UCU’s decision to take industrial action is extremely disappointing. AoC hopes to discuss this further with UCU.”

It comes as the Department for Education (DfE) prepares to resume talks over proposed changes to pay and conditions with unions representing teachers, including those at sixth form colleges.

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has written to the group of unions, which includes the ATL, the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT), to say she was “looking forward” to joining the talks.

The NUT wants the DfE to shelve plans for a system of performance-related pay, and commit to increase salaries in line with inflation. They also want the government to reverse pension reforms.

And in her letter, Ms Morgan said: “I would like to continue the talks in the format that has already been agreed. I know that previous discussions have been helpful in identifying some concrete ways in which we can implement policy better and believe there is a great deal more we can usefully discuss.

“One issue I particularly want to focus on with you is what more might be done to address the unnecessary workload sometimes experienced by teachers.

“I have been struck by the national and international evidence around this issue, which I know has already been reviewed in the talks with you, but also by what I have heard from individual teachers about the tasks they are sometimes asked to take on.

“Teachers join the profession to teach and we have a common interest in reducing – where we can – unnecessary work that takes teachers’ time away from teaching.”

Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) chief executive David Igoe said: “It’s encouraging that the new Secretary of State recognises that teachers have difficult workloads and is keen to have a dialogue about this.

“However the issue in SFCs is not so much about teachers having administration tasks that take them away from teaching, it is more about teachers generally having larger classes with a heavy burden of marking and preparation that that entails.

“The reductions in funding have forced colleges into being more efficient and they have had little choice but to increase class sizes and increase contact time in order to balance the books.

“Only time will tell whether this has an effect on quality and as ever it will be the students who suffer as teachers have less time or energy to give them the individual support they need. Our message to the Secretary of State is to give colleges (and schools) the resource they need to do the job and that includes making sure teachers have the time and space to support students individually.”

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has come under pressure from FE sector leaders to reform careers advice and guidance by establishing ‘careers hubs’.

In a letter to Mrs Morgan, the Association of Colleges (AoC), National Union of Students and children’s charity Barnardo’s, the three organisations request her support for an improved careers advice system.

It comes after the National Careers Council (NCC) warned that it had seen “insufficient progress” in reforms of careers advice, which the NCC has already criticised in two previous reports.

The letter asks Mrs Morgan to support the solution of careers hubs in different areas of England. The hubs would enable young people and others to find out about the career and training options available to them.

The letter suggests the hub would be supported by schools, colleges, universities, Jobcentre Plus and local authorities.

Schools already have a legal responsibility to provide independent and impartial advice to pupils, including information about vocational routes and apprenticeships, but the AoC has also asked Mrs Morgan to ensure a careers education is embedded into the curriculum.

Joy Mercer, Director of Education Policy at the AoC, said: “We do not blame schools. The government has created more places than there are students, so without support for transport, young people may stay on at school rather than pursuing a course or apprenticeship that might have immediate and lucrative employment rewards. We have to stem the tide of those dropping out of education at 17.

“Young people need to be made aware of all their options and to be taught how to do research into their chosen career.”

It comes after research carried out for the AoC showed that although 66 per cent of 2,001 children surveyed online said they were getting the support they needed, only half felt well-informed about the jobs available.

It showed that children tended to ask their parent or guardian (70 per cent) or a teacher (57 per cent) for advice about careers. Less than half of the year 11s questioned had seen a professional careers adviser despite being at a point where significant choices are made.

It also comes after the Department for Education (DfE) transferred its responsibility for funding the National Careers Service to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which already foots most of the bill.

The education select committee is currently preparing to hold an inquiry into careers advice later this year. The deadline for written submissions is Friday.

Ms Mercer added: “We believe that LEPs are ideally placed to lead these hubs. Careers advice should be included as a priority in their strategic plans. They would be able to ensure that the hub provides up-to-date information about the local jobs market and the qualifications and skills needed to work in local industries.

“From research that we carried out interviewing young people as part of workshops, we know that young people want hands-on work, practical experience of work, not just lessons in a classroom. Our workshops show that they want work experience to be a core part of their school or college experience.”

A spokesperson for the DfE said: “Delivering the best schools and skills to help young people succeed is a key part of the government’s long-term economic plan.

“That is why, as well as ensuring every young person develops a core body of knowledge and expertise, we are taking decisive steps to improve careers advice and make sure it meets the needs of young people and employers.”