A NUMBER of south Cumbria schools have confirmed that they will shut on Tuesday because of the national teachers' strike.

National Union of Teachers bosses have warned that the industrial action is likely to hit the majority of schools in the North West through closures, partial closures or reduced timetables.

Barrow Island Community Primary School, Thwaites Primary School and Millom Infant School will close on Tuesday because of the strike by members of the NUT.

Dowdales School, in Dalton, will be open for Year Seven and Year Eight students, but Year Nine and Year 10 students not be in school that day. The Evening Mail contacted a number of other secondary schools and primary schools in the area which confirmed that they will be open as normal.

Some schools across the county that are closing, or partially closing, have been announcing their plans on the Cumbria County Council website.

NUT members are staging a walk out after voting by more than 9-1 in favour of industrial action. But only about 50,000 votes were returned by the 210,000 members balloted, a turnout of just 24 per cent.

The union said its demands were to increase funding to schools and education, guarantee terms and conditions in all types of schools, and to resume negotiations on teacher contracts to allow workload to be addressed.

It says schools are seeing increased class sizes, a reduction in subject choices for children, especially in the arts, less materials and books in classrooms and cuts to school trips.

Chris Brooksbank, the Cumbria NUT secretary, said teachers are worried about funding cuts in schools.

Mr Brooksbank said: "This is not about making things awkward, it's an attempt for dialogue with the government.

"The government just does not seem to want to listen to teachers and they don't listen to parents."

The Department for Education said: "It is disappointing the NUT has chosen to take unnecessary and damaging strike action, which less than a quarter of its members voted for. It is even more disappointing when we have offered and committed to formal talks between ministers and the unions to address their concerns about pay."