A new report into antisemitism in schools has revealed the “shocking scale” of the issue in Britain, the education secretary has said as she vowed that “change will come”, reports BritPanorama.
Addressing the Commons, Lucy Powell confirmed the government plans to accept all 27 recommendations, warning that all children and teachers should be able to go to school or college “free from fear” and insisting that tackling antisemitism is a “generational challenge”.
The independent review, led by Sir David Bell, found that around one in five pupils said they had witnessed antisemitism – a figure that rose to three in five among Jewish pupils who participated in the survey.
Around half of them felt there was not necessarily going to be action taken on the back of an antisemitic incident that they had witnessed, it found.
Responding to the report in the House of Commons, Ms Powell stated: “Sir David has published this seminal review exposing the shocking scale of antisemitism in British society and how that’s reflected across education. Almost three in five Jewish young people and half of Jewish teachers have experienced or witnessed antisemitism. This cannot continue.”
Ms Powell added: “All children and teachers should be able to go to school or college free from fear. But there’s a wider responsibility for education as a whole to teach our young people British values of tolerance, acceptance and respect for one another.”
“Collectively we have a duty to educate this generation and the next on what antisemitism is, on why it’s wrong, and what happens when it takes hold in society.”
“So whether or not there are Jewish staff or Jewish students in your school or college, this report is for you. This generational challenge belongs to us all.”
The education secretary argued antisemitism is “normalised and amplified” on social media and said “old tropes” had found a “new life” online.
Sir David’s report has called for better materials for teachers to help them handle topical issues – like the conflict in the Middle East – when raised in lessons, arguing that political impartiality guidance for teachers should be strengthened.
It has called for schools to mark Holocaust Memorial Day amid concerns that schools have not marked the occasion on January 27 in recent years.
The review will also say schools and colleges should recognise antisemitism as a specific safeguarding risk, and it will call on the government to set up a hotline where school leaders can access advice on tackling antisemitism.
Confirming she plans to accept all of the report’s recommendations, the education secretary continued: “Antisemitism is unique in both historical context and its reach today. It demands a unique response.”
“That is why this government accepts all 27 recommendations from Sir David’s review.”
She extended her thanks to the Jewish community for “their bravery in engaging with this review”, adding: “I don’t take lightly the personal cost they have paid in recounting their deeply hurtful experiences. So they not only have my thanks, but my word that their voices will be heard. Change will come.”
Sir David stated pupils should be able to have open discussions on the conflict between Israel and Hamas without experiencing “prejudice or hatred”, arguing it was “not good enough” that some teachers and pupils felt conversations on the topic were “too difficult to touch” when they arose in classrooms across England.
When asked how teachers and pupils can discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict in schools and colleges, Sir David told the Press Association: “I think the concern that I had was that there was some evidence that in some places this was all considered just too difficult to touch.”
“I don’t think that’s good enough because it seems to me the task of educators, whether it’s the schools or colleges, is to enable students to have those sorts of conversations and discussions, but doing that without allowing prejudice or hatred or even inadvertently comments to be made that are antisemitic.”
However, the government-commissioned report will not call for an outright ban on teachers and pupils wearing political symbols or flags – like pro-Palestine badges – in schools and colleges.
Sir David explained he decided against a ban as he believed it was “unworkable” and “untested legally”.
He remarked it was “entirely reasonable” for individual schools and colleges to use existing mechanisms – such as codes of conduct for staff and pupils – to set out what should not be worn at school if concerns have been raised.
He emphasized: “I think it’s a reminder to schools and colleges [to] think carefully about political impartiality because we don’t want students to feel, however inadvertently, that they are being chilled from expressing their views.”
“At the same time, we want teachers to be empowered to allow students to express their views but to do that in an open, respectful way that understands there are different points of view.”
Students, parents, and teachers were urged to share their experiences for the government-commissioned review between April and July.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the school leaders’ union NAHT, has welcomed plans for more training, resources, and support for schools on antisemitism.
He indicated: “School leaders need clear, practical guidance that gives them confidence to navigate complex and sensitive issues while supporting open, respectful discussion in schools.”
Mr Whiteman added: “School leaders take their responsibility to create safe and inclusive environments for pupils and staff extremely seriously and support meaningful action to tackle it.”
“But schools cannot tackle this challenge alone. Antisemitism is a wider societal problem, and any national response must recognize that schools are one important part of a much broader solution.”
