Segregation in primary schools remains high

More pupils taught in mostly non-white classes

PRIMARY schools in Oldham remain among the most segregated in the country nearly nine years after the town’s race riots.

And the number of pupils being educated in mostly non-white classrooms has increased.

The figures from a study by Bristol University found that segregation in schools overall was either constant or declining.

But Professor Simon Burgess, who conducted the research, said places remain where segregation is high, particularly in Oldham, Bradford and Blackburn.

The information is on the newly-launched website www.measuringdiversity.org.uk, which outlines the ethnic make-up of schools. It gives figures from 2002 through to 2008, the latest available, for every local authority.

Nearly 30 per cent of Oldham’s primary school youngsters are Pakistani or Bangladeshi. However, more than 80 per cent of both attend schools where most children are non-white.

Pakistani or Bangladeshi pupils account for nearly 19 per cent of secondary pupils. Around 45 per cent of both are in “minority white” schools. The percentage of non-white secondary schools has doubled since 2002 to 13 per cent. In primaries it is up from 17 per cent to nearly 21 per cent.

A fall in the number of secondaries where most pupils are white is not reflected at primary level.

A Home Office report after disturbances in Oldham, Burnley and Bradford found that people were leading parallel lives.

However, a review five years later said few towns had done as much as Oldham to build community cohesion, but too many people from all ethnic backgrounds were reluctant to change.

Professor Burgess said that generally Bangladeshi and Pakistani pupils are more segregated than Indian pupils, who are more segregated than black pupils.

He added: “One of the biggest questions of our times is how well individuals from different ethnic groups get along together.

“Schools are an important place where this interaction takes place. It is a common saying that people’s attitudes are strongly influenced by their school days.

“So the peer groups that children play with, talk to and work with are important factors moulding their perspectives on society.

“The extent of ethnic diversity in schools is an important issue of public debate. This website provides some facts to enlighten this debate.”

Most pupils at St Hilda’s CE PrimarySchool in Oldham are from Bangladeshi families.

Head teacher Gillian Pursey said: “We do a lot of work around school linking, but ultimately we serve the immediate community around the school.”