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Education chiefs have rejected calls to take pressure off head teachers over LGBT education, despite the spectre of more protests at the school gates.

The message from ministers - that individual heads, not the Government, must decide when and what to say to pupils over LGBT equality - gives a green light to protesters to 'agitate and intimidate' head teachers, claimed city MP Steve McCabe.

Dozens, or even hundreds, more primaries could be at risk of school gate campaigns as a result.

In an emergency debate today, Erdington MP Jack Dromey (Lab) told the House of Commons: "We will always respect religious and cultural values and difference, but there are fundamental values of human rights and we must never retreat back down a path to a painful past where the love of two men for one another, or two women for one another, was demonised."

He warned: "By using the words 'it's for the school to decide', the Government will be exposing dozens, or even hundreds, of schools to the same kind of shameful treatment we have seen here in recent weeks."

Schools minister Nick Gibb faced an onslaught of calls from city MPs to strengthen the wording of guidance over LGBT education to try to see off protests outside Birmingham schools Parkfield and Anderton Park.

Jess Phillips (Lab, Yardley), who has previously accused some protesters of bigotry and homophobia, said: "All that is needed in the guidance is something that says in every school, every child has to learn about every equality characteristic. The headteachers in Birmingham and across the country want this."

But Mr Gibb claimed doing so would make 'no difference' to protestors.

(Image: Birmingham Live)

He said: "There is an element in this debate who will not agree to LGBT being taught in schools (whatever the wording) so I do not believe requiring it to be taught at a certain age at primary school would have had any impact at all in preventing those protests.

"This always has been and must remain a matter for head teachers and the school to decide what is appropriate for their pupils."

Steve McCabe (Lab, Selly Oak) said if the minister had seen the school gate protests for himself "he would realise that putting the onus on the school to decide the content and appropriateness (around LGBT) is never going to be accepted by these people...they will see it as a point of weakness and will agitate and intimidate until they get their way, and only the Government is going to be able to change that."

Labour's shadow minister for education, Angela Rayner, added: "I urge the minister and education department to understand they have the absolute will of this House to go further and support the schools. This is not about consultation - it is about LGBT and the misinformation that's being given out and the bigotry being shown by some minorities on our streets."

(Image: Getty Images)

Emma Hardy (Lab, Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle) said: "Passing the 2010 Equality Act was a proud moment but these rights only remain if we fight to keep them.

"Whatever efforts the department has made have clearly not worked. Over 70 schools are now seeing pressure and intimidation."

Hundreds of pupils were withdrawn from Parkfield School i n Alum Rock on Friday in protest after the school announced it would reinstate its No Outsiders equality programme, with some modifications, from September.

A small group of parents and supporters also protested at the school gates last week, saying they did not want their children to be told it is 'okay to be gay.'

According to some social media messages, parents are now threatening to withdraw their pupils permanently and find alternative provision because, they claim, the school leadership team led by Hazel Pulley has treated them poorly and dismissed calls for more negotiation.

(Image: Darren Quinton/Birmingham Live)

Mr Gibb, addressing the Commons today, said: "We have issued very clear guidance that we strongly encourage primary schools to teach LGBT relationships because there will be pupils who have two mothers and two fathers and it's important the other children respect that fact - but ultimately these things have to be a matter for head teachers.

"I do not believe, had we been prescriptive, we would have secured concensus among major providers of schools in the state sector and the private sector (over new Relationships and Sex Education legislation).

"I do not believe that being more prescriptive would have prevented anyone from protesting against something they fundamentally disagree with."

"Fatal mistake" to persuade Parkfield to back down over No Outsiders

In a BBC Panorama investigation into the issue that aired last night, it was claimed that Department of Education officials had put pressure on Parkfield's school leaders to suspend the programme 'to keep the issue out of the headlines.'

The DfE said it did not accept pressure was applied to stop teaching about equality at Parkfield. It said any suggestion the dispute should be kept out of the media was not intended to silence the school but to bring an end to the protests and encourage consultation.

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) said the suspension of the programme made the situation worse.

"It gave an impression, it gave almost licence, to people in communities that actually if they turned up outside of a school with loud hailers and protest that other schools would back down too," said Rob Kelsall, national secretary of the NAHT.

"I think that was a fatal mistake."

In an interview with BirminghamLive, published yesterday, human rights lawyer Nazir Afzal also said ministers had failed to protect head teachers.

Mr Afzal - who has prosecuted more than 100 honour killing cases and brought the Rochdale child sex exploitation abusers and high profile paedophiles to justice - said he was frustrated that head teachers remained isolated, despite lots of people talking up their support.

"The Government has pussyfooted around the issue and said it is a local issue for head teachers – and this is where we have ended up as a result, with children kept off school.

"People are then manipulating the situation with misinformation and misunderstandings, and sometimes with more malicious intent. This cannot be dealt with at a local level - protesters will continue to just pick off schools and head teachers one at a time. The heads need more support.

"Consultation is not negotiation. They seem to think consultation is ‘you will give in’ - but it is not the Good Friday Agreement. Consultation means the school explains to you what they are doing and why, and then does it. That's it."

"Feeding a Far Right Narrative that Muslims...cannot integrate"

Likely tensions around the Equalities Act and different protected characteristics had been expected since 2010. The introduction of new guidance over Relationships and Sex Education teaching in schools has brought those tensions to the surface.

"Ministers need to be prescriptive and just come out and say what head teachers should do.

"We also need all our local MPs and our faith leaders to speak up in public, not just in private or by whispering in people's ears.

"I challenge them to come and talk to me in the open."

Birmingham City Council is seeking a permanent injunction seeking to ban protests at the gates of Anderton Park School , which has faced mass gatherings and a pupil withdrawal against its teaching around LGBT equality.