The head of Ofsted was today labelled “highly irresponsible” and accused of Islamophobia by prominent Muslim figures after he accused independent faith schools of threatening to undermine social cohesion.
David Bell’s speech on citizenship at the Hansard Society today was met with a flurry of complaints after he warned that religious segregation in schools “must not put our coherence at risk”.
He pinpointed independent Muslim schools, which are growing in number most rapidly, and revealed excerpts from his forthcoming annual report which says that many Muslim schools must adapt their curriculum to help pupils “acquire an appreciation of and respect for other culture in a way that promotes tolerance and harmony”.
Iqbal Sacranie, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said Mr Bell’s remarks were “highly irresponsible”.
“The issue of community cohesion and coherence is of paramount importance for the whole nation,” he said. “But we consider it highly irresponsible to suggest that the growth of Muslim faith schools poses a threat to ‘our coherence as a nation’. The issue around schools not adequately fulfilling their responsibility in preparing children for ‘their wider responsibility and obligations’ is a generic issue affecting all poorly-resourced schools.”
Dr Mohamed Mukadam, chairman of the Association of Muslim Schools, accused Mr Bell of Islamophobia and challenged him to a public debate on the issue.
See also BBC News, 18 January 2005