09.06.2026 / Press releases / Ark Globe Academy / Justice for Cleaners

South London School Braces for Disruption as Migrant Cleaners Vote on Strike Action 

• Outsourced migrant cleaners at Ark Globe Academy begin strike ballot today in fight for the London Living Wage (LLW). Strike dates could be as early as July 2026. 

• The cleaners won the annual increase in 2020 but this year from 1 April 2026 they only received a partial uplift. 

• Contractor Atlas Cleaning Limited has said it cannot fully implement the London Living Wage increase due to contractual terms with Ark Globe Academy. 

• Ark Globe Academy’s outsourced cleaners earn £14.27 per hour whilst Ark’s chief executive Lucy Heller receives annual remuneration of £216,300 per annum. 

• UVW condemns that the lowest-paid workers appear to be bearing the brunt of financial pressures while those higher up the organisation remain protected. 

• This dispute is the latest in a long-running pattern at Ark Global Academy, where outsourced migrant cleaners have faced repeated instability after being transferred between contractors under TUPE.  

Outsourced migrant cleaners at Ark Globe Academy have begun a strike ballot today as they step up their fight for the London Living Wage (LLW). Strike action could begin at the south London school as early as July 2026.  

The cleaners, members of United Voices of the World (UVW) employed by subcontractor Atlas Cleaning Limited, successfully fought to secure the London Living Wage in 2020. The cleaners say they were shocked to discover that the full April 2026 increase would not be implemented for the first time in five years. Instead, they received only a partial uplift to £14.27 per hour. 

The cleaners have also faced months of payroll errors and delayed wage corrections. UVW says repeated attempts to resolve these errors with Atlas Cleaning have led to grievances, meetings and promises over a four-month period. Meanwhile the cleaners are left with financial instability and struggling to pay rent, bills and basic living costs. 

Atlas Cleaning has informed UVW that it cannot fully implement the 2026 London Living Wage increase because of contractual arrangements with Ark Globe Academy. 

Ark Globe Academy has told UVW that it decided “to pause alignment to the Real Living Wage for this financial year” due to wider financial pressures across the organisation and education sector. 

According to publicly available accounts, Ark chief executive Lucy Heller received annual remuneration of £216,300, compared with school cleaners who earn £14.27 per hour. 

Maria, a school cleaner, UVW member and single mother of two, said: 

“We are workers who keep this service running through our daily effort, waking up at 4:00 in the morning, enduring exhausting shifts and an ever-increasing workload. While we sacrifice our health and family life for this job, the company continues to ignore our demands, impacting our families’ livelihoods. 

For months, we have lived with the constant anxiety of not knowing whether we will be paid correctly, whether money will be missing from our wages, or whether we will once again have to fight for salaries we have already earned through our hard work. This is not an isolated mistake — we believe it reflects a systematic lack of respect toward the people who do the hardest and lowest-paid work. 

We have been patient. We have followed procedures, and given the company every opportunity to put things right.  

We are not asking for privileges. We are demanding dignity, fair wages, correct pay, and decent working conditions. And we will not remain silent while our families continue to suffer the consequences of this injustice. Enough is enough!” 

Nelly Ospino, UVW General Secretary, said: 

“These cleaners are already among the lowest-paid workers in the school. They cannot absorb missing wages, payroll mistakes or delays to pay that they rely on to survive. Every penny matters when you are living from month to month. The lowest-paid workers are effectively being asked to shoulder the burden of financial pressures while others higher up the organisation remain protected. There appears to be one standard for directly employed staff and another for outsourced migrant cleaners — despite both contributing to the same school community every day. Outsourcing continues to create a two-tier workforce where migrant workers are treated as disposable and denied the dignity, security and respect they deserve. These workers are standing up not only for their own livelihoods, but against a system that too often balances budgets on the backs of low-paid migrant labour.” 
 
For further information, contact the UVW communications team:
        

Isabel: 07706 987443    

Cristina: 07548 759340    

Email: comms@uvwunion.org.uk         

About UVW           

United Voices of the World (UVW) is a grassroots union representing low-paid, insecure, and predominantly migrant and BAME workers, including cleaners, concierges, couriers, carers, and hospitality staff across London.   

ENDS 

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