A statement by London Development Education Centre and South Asia Solidarity Group.

    New Labour is proposing that all new schools will be either funded by private companies or be single faith schools.

    For some of us who are sick of the poor resources, low standards and racism in many comprehensive schools, this may seem like an answer. But we believe that single faith schools will mean more discrimination and less resources. They will cause deeper divisions in the Black communities, and a greater stranglehold of the most conservative, anti-women and communal individuals over our children's education and over our communities as a whole. David Blunkett's recent comments about the children of asylum seekers 'swamping' state schools only confirm the racism underlying New Labour's education policies.

    The principles of comprehensive education are already being undermined by growing inequalities between comprehensive schools. Schools which are in areas which are predominantly Black or Asian are often the worst off in resources and standards.
    Church of England, Roman Catholic and Jewish schools have been in existence for more than a hundred years. In recent times the waiting lists for these schools have increased dramatically and Church schools in particular are in the privileged position of being able to be selective in choosing the children to go to their schools. This in turn has raised performance in religious schools. Selecting students for both academic ability and for their backgrounds not only puts the focus on producing and moulding students of a particular type, but also violates the principle of equal access to education for all irrespective of background and ability.
    From an economic point of view the emphasis on single faith schools releases the government by a cunning sleight of hand from having to fulfil any of their electoral promises on education and from their responsibility to provide a decent and high quality public service. Unlike comprehensives, single faith schools are only partially funded by the state. At present recognised faith schools are required to fund 15 % of their capital expenditure; under the new proposals only 10 % will be required. This may appear to be an increase in public spending however minimal. But in reality it is designed as a substitute for the much greater investment which would be required if the government were to improve and maintain standards of education for the vast majority of students who will continue to attend Comprehensives schools.
    Divide and Rule Strategy
    From the 1970s onwards the State used policies of 'multiculturalism' to fund and nurture community organisations in urban areas with significant Asian and African Caribbean populations. In this way Black organisations with radical agendas were encouraged to identify not as Black but as belonging to one of the 'ethnic minority' communities. Black populations were reconstructed as communities with leaders who were politically acceptable to the state.
    Multiculturalism was effectively a divide and rule strategy. At first, for example, the 'ethnic minority communities' were defined as 'Asian' and 'Afro-Caribbean', later essentially linguistic - e.g. Gujarati, Punjabi, or in the case of Caribbean's, based around island of origin - and since the late nineties they have been increasingly centred around religion, through the notion of 'Faith Communities'. At the same time, any discussion of religion or faith in Britain is currently taking place in the context of virulent anti-Muslim racism. US policies which have identified Islam as the new 'enemy' of western 'civilisation' have fed into the racism experienced by people in working class Asian communities in Britain, with Muslims increasingly demonised as fanatical and violent over the last decade.
    Policing women's behaviour
    For the Asian community in Britain, Labour's decision to extend single-faith state schools among ethnic minorities, especially in deprived areas, is a continuation of its policy of strengthening the most reactionary elements in the community. In the first state-sponsored Sikh school in the country, students are taught about their 'culture' and the 'values' of the Sikh religion, including a 'modest' dress code for the women. As Fabbeh Husein from Bradford college puts it, "Faith schools are more about regulating the sexuality of the female than developing intellectual power and thinking." For girls, single-faith schools can become yet another agency that polices their behaviour. Who defines these so-called values and culture? The British state is once again identifying Asian tradition and values with those of the patriarchal forces within the community and excluding other voices that challenge these stereotypes.
    Having identified male religious leaders as the representatives of the community, Labour aims to give them access to the minds of our children in the hope of silencing the very real demands for better resources, jobs and services in deprived and long-neglected inner cities. This initiative goes hand in hand with the wider government strategy of using multiculturalism in order to appear to address concerns about racism without actually taking any concrete steps to tackle the issue through changing the laws on immigration, reining in the rhetoric about asylum seekers or tackling widespread institutional racism.
    After the disturbances in Oldham, Bradford and other cities last summer, one of the problems that was identified in those communities was the extreme segregation in education, with schools being almost all-white or all-Asian. In research carried out among school students studying in ethnically mixed schools like the George Mitchell Secondary School in Waltham Forest, almost all the students expressed their opposition to single-faith schools because they wanted to mix with and learn about people who held different beliefs. What we need to do is to celebrate the diversity within our schools and not erase it.
    Asian communities which are already ghettoised - with pupils already in the worst of comprehensives - are likely to be divided among themselves on the basis of religious difference with Asian children growing up to distrust each other when they come from different religious backgrounds.
    Single faith schools - a second class education for our children
    The state is going to require only 10 % from faith schools of their capital. Institutions like the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church have substantial resources, and can raise more funds from their very wealthy patrons for their schools. We do not believe that ethnic minority communities will have that kind of financial muscle to continuously fund separate religious schools for many more years to come. Consequently in the long term the non-Christian schools are likely to be relegated to underdevelopment. The State will gradually consign our schools to neglect, indifference and discrimination.
    Some Asian parents feel that these schools will also 'protect' their children, especially their daughters, from western influences. But children cannot and should not be isolated from the society they live in. A genuinely good education should instead encourage them to make their own decisions with confidence.
    Currently many parents think Single Faith schools are the answer to problems of racism and racist attacks in school, lack of resources and poor quality education. But in fact the majority of single faith schools will be poorly resourced and discriminated against and encourage the creation of second-class education. They will increase the power of the most reactionary religious leaders by giving them control over our children's education and making us dependent on their approval for places for our children in these schools. People who are not religious will be excluded. Finally they will deepen the divisions along religious lines which are already tearing our communities apart.
    Single faith schools are not the answer. We have a right to a better education within the comprehensive system and we must fight for it!
    Sarbjit Johal
    293-299 Kentish Town Road, London NW5 2TJ tel: (Londec) 0207 424 9535/ (SASG) 0207 267 0923 email: Londec@hotmail.com and southasia@hotmail.com)