‘Racist’ parents pull children from Religious Education classes to stop them learning about Islam Parents are pulling their children out of religious education classes because they do not want them to learn about Islam, […]

Parents are pulling their children out of religious education classes because they do not want them to learn about Islam, research has shown.

A survey of school leaders has revealed that nearly four in 10 respondents said they had received requests from parents to remove their child from RE lessons, with more than 10 per cent stating the reason was down to “racism”.

According to the Liverpool Hope University study, school leaders had voiced concerns about “racism or Islamophobia as a motivating factor for parents seeking to exercise the right to withdraw”.

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Shocked

One respondent said they were “shocked” by parents refusing to allow their children to visit a mosque.

“I found it difficult to understand that the parents thought that this would irrevocably harm their child,” the teacher said. “In the end I couldn’t take the children to the mosque as parents refused to sign the permission slip, but they had to remain in school and learn about mosques from the internet.”

Another added: “I am really concerned about the children of white, British parents who are basing their decision to withdraw on racism.”

The report suggested that “media hype” was partly responsible, while it also pointed to campaigns by far-right groups the English Defence League and the British National Party, which called on parents to withdraw their children from lessons about Islam.

Legal withdrawal

Researchers gained responses from more than 300 senior leaders.

It follows concerns raised by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers last month, which warned parents were abusing their rights to withdraw their children because of intolerant attitudes to Islam.

Parents are legally entitled to pull their child from RE classes for religious reasons, but campaigners are now calling on the Government to tighten the rules on withdrawal from lessons.