‘Safeguarding children from sexual harassment is an area for further improvement. Talking about the negative impact of homosexuality [sic] in the school when dealing with emerging allegations of sexual harassment is insensitive and may stop children talking about it.’ That is what Ofsted has written about a private Muslim school in Kent. Humanists UK, which campaigns for an inclusive education system free of religious bias and safe for children of all backgrounds, said it was concerned by the report and that it highlighted why religious dogma must never influence teaching about LGBT issues.
The Darul Uloom London School is a private boarding school for boys in Chislehurst. As a result of this and other concerns identified, the school has been given a warning notice from the Department for Education (DfE). It must provide an action plan setting out how it will deal with the points raised in the report, in particular: ‘School leaders should ensure that the school sensitively promotes open discussions about sexual harassment and that staff approach any emerging issues with curiosity and an open mind.’ That said, surprisingly, Ofsted still rated the school as ‘Good’ overall.
Private faith schools – of a variety of religions – have a history of failing to teach about LGBT issues in an inclusive manner, and are more likely to be rated inadequate by Ofsted than other private schools. In 2021 Humanists UK highlighted how two Jewish faith schools were failed by Ofsted for refusing to discuss LGBT content. Meanwhile an evangelical Christian school changed its approach after it was accused of tacitly promoting the homophobic views of a right-wing American Christian fundamentalist.
Humanists UK Education Campaigns Manager Robert Cann said:
‘This is a prime example of some of the problems caused by allowing religious dogma to influence our education system. We need stricter standards on inclusivity for private faith schools, but in the meantime I hope that the school will heed the warnings from the DfE and take the steps now required to make sure this kind of discrimination does not happen again.’
‘Parents are of course free to send their children to private faith schools. But such schools are required by law to promote the “fundamental British value” of mutual respect and tolerance and they are expected to have “an understanding of the importance of identifying and combating discrimination.” Furthermore the school has a duty under the Equality Act to not discriminate against LGBT pupils – in particular due to religious teachings. The school has likely failed in both of these duties. It is extremely worrying that this incident was discovered during inspection into safeguarding.’
Notes:
For further comment or information, media should contact Humanists UK Director of Public Affairs and Policy Richy Thompson at press@humanists.uk or phone 020 7324 3072 or 020 3675 0959.
Read the Ofsted report.
Read more about our work on private faith schools and RSE.
Humanists UK is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people. Powered by 100,000 members and supporters, we advance free thinking and promote humanism to create a tolerant society where rational thinking and kindness prevail. We provide ceremonies, pastoral care, education, and support services benefitting over a million people every year and our campaigns advance humanist thinking on ethical issues, human rights, and equal treatment for all.