A row has broken out at a leading girls’ schools after students accused it of not doing enough to teach them about black history.
Pupils and alumnae from the £22,000-a-year Francis Holland school near Sloane Square wrote to the school complaining they had been left ignorant of matters including Britain’s colonial past, institutionalised racism and the effects of structural inequalities.
Urging curriculum changes, they wrote: “Schools with the privilege of choosing their own curriculum should be the ones implementing these changes, else they are complicit in upholding white supremacy and benefiting from their institutionalised white privilege.”
Headteacher Lucy Elphinstone said segregation, slavery, apartheid, partition and discrimination have always been taught at the school, but added that students “have hitherto shown little interest in these issues”.
She wrote to one complainant: “Some of your signatories did study history, even this year, and seem to have forgotten the units on some of these subjects. As far as our own school is concerned, the facts have always been presented honestly.
“I am glad to see them now finding their voice — though in relation to the signatories who are our current pupils, I wish they understood how best to make that voice heard. It is in calm and rational discussion offering and listening to opinions with humility and care. It is certainly not through accusation or aggression, even less violence.”
One former pupil responded: “She seems to be trying to intimidate the girls still at the school. How can she blame us for not being engaged? It’s her school. Surely it’s up to her to ensure the curriculum is taught in an engaging way.”
Mrs Elphinstone told the Standard her staff had been “astounded and very hurt” by the letter. She added: “We support the Black Lives Matter movement. We don’t need to be threatened or bullied into doing more. You can’t just leave the ignorance on your teachers. The opportunities to learn were here.”
Similar petitions were sent to other London private schools last week, spurred on by the Black Lives Matter protests. Black alumni have spoken out about racist abuse at the hands of teachers and fellow pupils, and called for curriculum changes and bias training.
