NURSERY nurses in Darlington are planning a protest march and rally to highlight their dispute with the council over low pay and job grades.

Around 150 nursery nurses are expected to march from Stanhope Park at 11am on Saturday, December 2, before gathering for a public rally in the town centre.

Talks broke down with the council earlier this year when three nursery nurse representatives failed to reach an agreement with the assistant director of education.

Together with trade union Unison, the team lodged a claim for job re-grading which would provide a career structure for well-qualified staff.

They also asked for the bottom scale to be increased from £9,852 to the current top rate of £12,444, increasing in line with qualified teaching rates of up to £18,000.

Unison says it can take up to ten years for a nursery nurse to reach the current top rate of pay. But the council line was that best value reviews and job evaluation exercises needed to be resolved first.

Mr Alan Docherty, Unison's Darlington branch secretary, told the D&S Times the council was using these reasons as excuses.

"This council is severely underfunded and they just can't keep hiding behind reviews, job evaluation and budget crises as an excuse for doing nothing."

He added: "Some nursery nurses have taken further education training which has brought them up to degree standard. The council knows this too."

Mrs Mary Harris, a nursery nurse at George Dent nursery, is co-ordinating the protest.

She said: "We do a good job providing quality early years education for the children of Darlington. We are dedicated staff and we should be adequately rewarded. I hope the demonstration will show the council we mean business."

Mr Geoff Pennington, director of education at Darlington council, reiterated the council's position. He added: "We recognise the contribution nursery nurses make to schools and we value that."