TEACHING assistants are to lobby councillors at Cheshire County Council's full council meeting on Thursday next week - despite being offered an improved 'single status' package.

They say the improved package does not mean more money for the assistants but means an increase in working hours to reduce the £2,000 pay cut they face.

Talks between UNISON and the county council, facilitated by ACAS, were convened last week to try to reach a local settlement on single status.

This is a national agreement requiring all councils to address long standing equal pay issues and to harmonise terms and conditions for non-teaching staff.

But the talks broke down without agreement and then the county council executive decided to add £1 million to the present £6.6million cost of harmonising the pay and conditions of the authority's work force.

David Rowlands, education executive member, said: "We have decided to make significant improvements to the position of our teaching assistants.

"We had already agreed that even where some staff face a reduction in the long term, they should not lose wages for three years.

"This decision will reduce the need for pay protection even further."

Ray McHale, Cheshire representative of UNISON, said: "We do not see this as a solution.

"They are asking teaching assistants to work an extra four-and-a-half hours per week and still they are getting a pay cut."