Banner-waving lecturers took to the road outside the Five Acres campus to protest about Government plans to change their pension scheme.

Chiefs at Gloucestershire College closed down the Forest campus because so many of the staff decided to join the walk out by the University and College Union.

Several students joined the lecturers angry that their final salary scheme could disappear.

And passing motorists beeped their horns to support of the staff who gathered outside the college last Thursday morning.

A union official said: "This is a national day of action and has nothing to do with the recent merger.

"It would have happened, merger or not, and is leading up to the national day of action in London on Saturday.

"They talk about gold-plated pensions as if we are earning huge amounts but the majority don't.

"The average pension for a public sector worker is £10,000 a year, £6,000 for the NHS. Now they want to calculate it on the average not the final salary."

Gloucester and Cheltenham campuses stayed open because not so many staff joined the strike.

The Forest has a larger proportion of members among around 100 full and part-time teaching staff.

"The students have been very supportive, some have been here with us this morning," said the official.

"They are angry about the cuts as well. Many of them will lose their EMA half way through their courses and others are worried if they can afford to go to university."

Some office and administration staff did work as normal.

But Gloucestershire College's director of customer services and marketing Peter White said they decided to close the college because they did not want students travelling in for nothing.