SCHOOLS, council services and Government agencies will close on Thursday when tens of thousands of public sector workers in the region take part in coordinated strike action.

Members of Unison, Unite, GMB and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) will walk out alongside colleagues in the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Fire Brigade Union (FBU).

The day of disruption has been planned to highlight growing anger over pay, conditions and public sector cuts.

Hundreds of schools in the North-East and North Yorkshire are expected to shut for the day or face disruptions.

Services run by local authorities including libraries, leisure centres, day centres for the elderly and waste collections will be hit.

Staff working at Government departments in the region will walk out, with the Student Loans Company and Department for Work and Pensions offices in Darlington both affected.

Job centres, tax offices, driving test centres and courts will close or offer a limited service.

Work at the Passport Office in Durham City - which has been at the centre of a national controversy over delays issuing passports - is also expected to be disrupted.

Simon Elliott, regional secretary of the PCS union, said passport staff felt they had no choice and denied the strike would make the situation worse.

"I don't think it could get an worse," he said.

"It's because of Government policy around job cuts and office closures that these problems have occurred.

"We're faced with no alternative but to take action."

Firefighters from the FBU will strike from 10am until 7pm on Thursday as part of their ongoing dispute with the Government over pension reforms.

NUT regional Secretary, Mike McDonald, said that as well as voicing their unhappiness over pay, pensions and working conditions, teachers were showing their opposition to changes in the education system being pushed through by the Government.

He added: "Teachers are extremely reluctant to strike because of the impact on children’s education.

"However, they feel that this current Government’s attacks on education will cause far more damage."

Unison said local government workers have endured a "devastating" three-year pay freeze followed by a "miserly" one per cent pay increase last year.

Nicky Ramanandi, the union's deputy regional convenor, said: “We believe that we are worth more and we don’t believe the employers when they say that keeping our pay low will protect jobs and services."

Union members from across the region will gather in Northumberland Road, Newcastle, at 11am on Thursday for a march and rally.