Schools are shut across Barking and Dagenham today as part of a national teachers strike over pay and working conditions.

The local National Union of Teachers said 46 out of 50 schools in the borough have been affected by the strikes, while four remain open as normal.

Teachers will march from Malet Street near Euston to Downing Street in Westminster.

The unions are in dispute with education secretary Michael Gove over planned changes to teachers’ pay and contracts, working conditions and pensions.

The National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the National Association of Schoolmasters & Union of Women Teachers accuse the secretary of state of refusing to listen to their concerns.

Parents are advised to contact their children’s school to see how the strike will affect them.