Primary school battle over muslim pupils headscarf ban

Credit: PA

A Catholic school has been accused of breaching anti-discrimination laws after claims that a four-year-old Muslim pupil was told she could not wear aheadscarf.

Birmingham City Council said it was supporting the primary school in theHandsworth area to ensure its policies - which do not allow hats or headcoverings - are appropriate, after it was criticised by a Labour councillor.

Cllr Waseem Zaffar, the city council's Cabinet Member for Transparency,Openness and Equality, met with the school's headteacher last week to discuss a complaint from the pupil's family.

In a comment posted on Facebook at the weekend, claiming that the school had contravened the Equality Act, Cllr Zaffar wrote:

In a statement issued by the council, Councillor Brigid Jones, Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Schools, said:

The school's uniform policy on its website specifies "hats or scarves are not allowed to be worn in school" Credit: PA

The school's uniform policy on its website specifies "hats or scarves are notallowed to be worn in school" alongside examples including a woman in aheadscarf.