Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has sent an open letter to the Secretary of State for Education this week setting out problems the inspectorate has identified and action it is taking in regards to gender segregation at some independent Muslim faith schools. The letter reveals that Ofsted has this month carried out three emergency follow-up inspections of independent faith schools currently judged inadequate, including the Rabia Girls’ and Boys’ School in Luton, which was subsequently found to be segregating pupils in non-religious classroom settings and staff during training sessions by gender.
In his letter Sir Michael observes how such segregation is at odds with ‘the spirit of the equalities legislation’ which underpins school’s legal requirement to advance pupils spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, as well school’s duty to promote ‘British Values’. He argues that ‘Any form of segregation, without a good educational reason, is likely to lead to an inadequate inspection judgement for leadership and management.’
Chair of the Accord Coalition, Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, said ‘Ofsted’s appetite to challenge gender segregation is to be welcomed, and its remit should be expanded so that it can again inspect all state funded schools on their contribution towards community cohesion, and be allowed for the first time to inspect the provision of RE at state funded faith schools. However, Ofsted’s letter inadvertently draws attention to a glaring inconsistency in a school system which says that it is otherwise okay to segregate and discriminate against teachers, children and families on the grounds of faith.
‘Just as schools should be required to uphold equality duties, so the government should not send out contradictory messages, but seek to better ensure discrimination is not a part of school life, and least of all in the name of religion. There is no clear educational justification for segregating children on these grounds, and such discrimination should have no place at state funded schools.’
Accord has previously criticised Ofsted for issuing guidance that stated its inspectors should expect to come across gender segregation at some Muslim and Jewish schools and which inferred that such segregation should be considered as normal. The guidance was removed in June 2014 weeks after a school implicated in that year’s Birmingham schools scandal was criticised by the Education Funding Agency for gender segregation of pupils in classrooms.
