has prompted calls for a stronger government response against the demonstrations to counteract a
“worrying” rise in hate crime.
Hate crime offences recorded by West Midlands police, involving children aged 17 and under in and near to
schools and colleges, have risen by 52 per cent – from 44 in 2017-18 to 67 in 2018-19. The figures come
after months of protests from parents and campaigners outside Parkfield Community School and Anderton
Park School in Birmingham over the age-appropriateness of LGBT+ lessons.
During the period when schools started receiving complaints about LGBT+ teaching, from December 2018
to May, the number of police reports of hate crime in the West Midlands more than doubled (a 129 per cent
rise) compared to the same six-month period the year before. Hate crimes in schools in London have also
risen in the past year but only by 3 per cent, the data reveals.
Sarah Hewitt-Clarkson, head of Anderton Park School, which faced protests for nine weeks, believes the
demonstrations at the Birmingham schools could have fuelled a rise in offences in the county. She told The
Independent that the scale of the problem is likely to be even greater than the figures suggest as offensive
incidents that occurred outside the school could not be listed as hate crimes.
For example, the headteacher says protesters held banners saying “Adam and Eve. Not Adam and
Steve” and said misogynistic things like “women were created for man’s pleasure”. “It is just horrific but
none of these things apparently pass the threshold for being arrestable,” Ms Hewitt-Clarkson said. “I think
it is time to look at what hate crime actually means.”
West Midlands police are reviewing a large amount of material, including pictures and video, relating to
recent protests at the Birmingham primary school. But there have been no arrests or charges to date. A
“homophobic” clip featuring the headteacher was circulated on a WhatsApp group last month, and in
April far-right and anti-Islam material was also posted to Anderton Park Primary school.
The figures on schools only includes victims aged 17 and under, which means teachers and parents affected
by hate crimes are not reflected in the data. However, a separate freedom of information request to
the force shows the overall number of hate crimes in the West Midlands has risen by 23 per cent – from
4,686 to 5,770.
Of these incidents, the number of homophobic offences have surged by 41 per cent in a year – from 445 to
627.
Andrew Moffat, a gay teacher who has been at the centre of the row over teaching about families with same-
sex parents, said: “I have never experienced homophobia like I have in the last six months. [The figures] are
extremely worrying. The protests have given a licence to people that think it is okay to shout abuse. I think
it is becoming acceptable to stand outside and chant ‘shame’ about a gay teacher.”
Mr Moffatt, assistant head at Parkfield school, has reported a “significant amount” of offences targeting him
- both at school and online – to the police. Earlier in the year, he was subjected to a death threat.
Speaking to The Independent, he said: “People are seeing that this is happening and they are not seeing a
strong, robust response from the Department for Education or from anyone in fact. I am really concerned
that there is a culture developing where hate crime is becoming acceptable.”
Chief Inspector Tony Morriss, West Midlands Police’s deputy lead for hate crime, said they could not
speculate as to the reasons behind an increase in hate crimes in schools in the past year. “What we do know
is that there is a far greater awareness and understanding that it won’t be tolerated, and that police will take
action,” he added.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, called the figures
“disturbing”, adding that the recent protests have exemplified a “heightened sense of social tension.” He