Migrants are to blame for oversubscribed primary schools in the UK, a Conservative minister has claimed, as thousands of children are expected not to receive their first choice of primary school this week.
Employment Minister Priti Patel said it was “regrettable” that many British children would miss out on spaces at their preferred schools for the next academic year and warned that “uncontrolled migration” was putting too much pressure on the education system.
Ms Patel, whose parents moved to the UK from Uganda, criticised her own Government for failing to plan for enough school places.
“The shortage of primary school places is yet another example of how uncontrolled migration is putting unsustainable pressures on our public services,” she said.
“Education is one of the most important things the Government delivers, and it’s deeply regrettable that so many families with young children are set to be disappointed today.”
One in four primary schools is now full or oversubscribed, it was reported this week, with a further 295,000 new pupils expected to enroll by 2020. Shadow Education Secretary Lucy Powell said the education system was in “crisis”, and called on the Government to address the “broken school system”.
Migrant support charity Migrants' Rights Networks disputed the Ms Patel's claims.
Charity Director Don Flynn said: "Ms Patel's comments do not square with what we know of the impact of migration on local schools in areas where new arrivals are present in large numbers.
"In London in particular the presence of children from migrant families in the local school system has played an important part in pushing standards upwards and making the capital one of the most successful parts of the country in terms of the performance of schools.
"Whilst there is clearly evidence of problems in terms of finding places for all the children who need them, this seems to be more closely connected with lack of investment in schools and the demands placed on them by constant reorganisation. It is wrong to say that migration itself is the cause of these problems."
