100 signatures reached
To: Paul Stone, CEO, Discovery Schools Academy Trust
Stop union-busting: protect union reps! Reinstate Tom Barker!
For more than five months, UNISON’s Leicester City branch has been campaigning to reinstate victimised trade union rep, Tom Barker. Tom is a teaching assistant and UNISON Steward at Ash Field Academy, a SEND School in Leicester operated by Discovery Schools Academy Trust ("DSAT").
Tom was suspended from duties on October 30th 2025. Just four working days earlier, a UNISON ballot for industrial action had concluded, in which a clear strike mandate was established: 60% of Ash Field members cast a vote, with 86% voting for industrial action over staffing and safety.
DSAT claims that Tom's case is still under investigation – though the allegations used to justify the original suspension have since been dropped, DSAT has since introduced a new set of allegations. These new allegations have already been investigated, but DSAT is insisting on investigating them again, and is refusing to lift Tom's suspension while it does so.
UNISON believes that this is a clear case of union-busting. We believe that Tom was suspended both for his role in organising successful ballots, and to intimidate other UNISON members at Ash Field into silence.
We call upon DSAT to immediately reinstate Tom Barker, to permanently stop all anti-union activity, and to instead work together with trade unions to address concerns raised by its workforce.
We call upon DSAT to immediately reinstate Tom Barker, to permanently stop all anti-union activity, and to instead work together with trade unions to address concerns raised by its workforce.
Why is this important?
The local trade union movement, including Leicester and District Trades Council, stands behind Tom. An injury to one is an injury to all.
But Tom’s case has much more far-reaching implications for the labour movement. Tom’s suspension is also a direct attack on the rights of other UNISON members, who have been denied access to their elected representative in the middle of an industrial dispute.
On March 18th 2026, UNISON members at Ash Field Academy completed an industrial action ballot over Tom’s suspension and the attack this represents on their rights. A massive majority of 87% voted for strikes on a turnout of 57%.
Ash Field Academy is one of UNISON Leicester City’s most densely organised workplaces, and members there have a track record of winning – in 2023, Ash Field UNISON members won pay increases of between 18 and 25% after 43 days of strikes.
If employers get away with victimising union stewards simply for doing their job effectively - especially in the middle of ongoing industrial disputes - this sets a dangerous precedent for our movement as a whole.