Parents ban kids going on school visit to Exeter mosque due to 'terror fears'

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/apr/30/exeter-mosque-parents-ban-children-school-visit

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Ten children who have been banned by their parents from taking part in a school visit to a Devon mosque will be considered truants, a council has said.

Parents at Lostwithiel school in Cornwall have said they are not willing to allow the 10 pupils, aged seven to 11, to go to the mosque in Exeter. The school said the parents had “raised concerns about safety due to the activities of terrorist groups such as Isis”.

As part of the school’s religious education, 91 pupils were due to take the 68-mile trip to visit Exeter cathedral and the mosque next Thursday.

However, an unnamed parent among those who have withdrawn their children from the trip said they had been worried because of the “horrific events that occur every day”.

“This decision is not one based on ignorance or racial or religious beliefs, but one based purely on safety concerns,” the parent told the Plymouth Herald.

Exeter mosque’s imam, Mohammed Abrar, told the Guardian he wanted to invite the concerned parents to visit the mosque for themselves. He said: “This does happen sometimes but I am not aware of it happening too often, perhaps normally it is one or two individual parents, and we have to respect their choice.

“But we are a mosque in Exeter, and if someone does something [elsewhere in the world], you can’t blame everybody here for it.

“We have had school visits, teachers, volunteer and interfaith groups since 1976, and we hold open days several times a year. This is an extremely welcoming, friendly mosque and we accommodate everybody.”

The Muslim Council of Britain said it hoped the parents’ reaction was “atypical and not reflective of a growing sentiment against Muslims in this country” and added that school visits help pupils to “understand real Islam and dispel the myths and hysteria that surrounds our religion”.

A spokesman said of the parents who banned their children from going to the mosque: “We would have thought a well-rounded education involves learning about those of a different faith. It is disappointing to hear that some parents have chosen to pull their children out of a visit to a mosque due to events elsewhere in the world.”

Carolyn Huxley, the school’s headteacher, said the trip would be an opportunity to “show the children that the views of extremists are not a true reflection of the Islam religion”.

The chair of governors, Kat Smith, expressed regret over the furore. She said: “This is the first time pupils from the school have visited a mosque and it is an exciting opportunity for them to learn about different faiths and ensure that they are aware of the diverse nature of modern Britain.

“A full risk assessment has been conducted for the trip and there is no more risk attached to this trip then any other school trip.”

A parents meeting was organised on Tuesday with David Hampshire, the Cornwall county adviser for RE for the past 18 years, to explain the aims of the trip, as well as a special assembly for the pupils, she said.

But both the school and Cornwall council warned that the teaching of RE was enshrined in law, and that although parents had some rights to withdraw their children from studying religion, it would be a breach of the Equality Act 2010 if parents wanted to stop their children learning about “one specific religion”.

A letter to parents says the school is “aware that children growing up in Cornwall may have little contact with Muslims and [must] promote good relations between people of different beliefs and ethnicities as part of its single equality duty”.

It said: “Any child who does not attend (without a legitimate reason) will be marked as an unauthorised absence as required by the Department for Education.”

The school was praised as good by an Ofsted inspection in November, with the report citing the planned trip to Exeter for “good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development”.

The school’s website talks of the “difficult balance” of respecting all differences. It says: “We have got that balance right and celebrate children and their families who bring a range of cultures, religious beliefs and physical abilities to our school.”

Percy Prowse, the lord mayor of Exeter, told the Exeter Express and Echo the children would be missing a “golden opportunity”.

He said: “To make such an assertion, particularly regarding the Exeter mosque, is about as far from the truth as you can get. It is a wonderful place. It is full of children and toddlers playing, education classes and people going in to pray as they would in any church.”