Pimlico Academy will amend ‘racist’ uniform policy, review the curriculum and no longer fly the flag

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The headteacher of a London school at the centre of a race row has caved in and agreed to take down the Union flag, amend ‘racist’ uniform rules and review the curriculum after pupils staged a mass protest. 

Pimlico Academy has been at the centre of a mutiny by students and teachers alike this week over new head teacher Daniel Smith’s ‘back to basics’ regime overseen by the school’s parent academy chain, which is chaired by the Conservative peer Lord Nash, 72.

Changes introduced after Mr Smith’s arrival last September included banning hairstyles that ‘block people’s view’ and hijabs that are ‘too colourful’. Critics claimed this was discriminatory against Muslims and people with Afro hairstyles at the school, where three quarters of children are from ethnic minorities. 

The outcry at the school had also extended to include other policies claimed to be ‘discriminatory’, including changes to the history curriculum to make it more chronological, which protesters said emphasised white kings and queens over BAME figures.

The British flag had been removed and burnt by pupils in September before it was put back up. Over the weekend, anti-flag graffiti appeared on the school walls saying ‘Ain’t no black in the Union Jack’, ‘White schools for brown kids are u mad’ and ‘Pimlico Academy…run by racists…for profit’. 

Today, Tory MP Bob Blackman told MailOnline the situation at the school is ‘bizarre’ and taking down the union flag is ‘ridiculous’. 

He said: ‘There are things where there could be room for manoeuvre if they have got recalcitrant children… but to back down over flying the union flag is totally unacceptable. It is totally unacceptable to have a position whereby the flag of our country is not allowed to fly above public buildings.’ 

The rebellion is a major challenge to traditional Conservative education reforms similar to those promoted by Michael Gove when he was Education Secretary. 

Many protesters have credited the Black Lives Matter movement for inspiring the protest, and some of the hundreds of pupils and parents who gathered outside the school yesterday carried BLM banners amid chants of ‘we want change’. 

Opposition is also being led by the notoriously militant National Education Union, whose members from Pimlico Academy on Tuesday night ‘overwhelmingly’ passed a motion of no confidence in Mr Smith. An indicative ballot is set to be held after the Easter break, which could potentially lead to strikes.

 The school’s headmaster Daniel Smith has now acquiesced to some of the pupils’ demands and even praised the protesters, saying the flag will come down ‘pending a review’.  

He said in a statement: ‘The right to protest is a civil liberty which, in the United Kingdom, we all enjoy, one that was hard fought-for and which not everyone in the world is fortunate to have. 

‘Our students are bright, courageous, intelligent young people, passionate about the things that matter to them and acutely attuned to injustice. I admire them hugely for this though I regret that it came to this.’

He added: ‘The issue of the flying of the Union flag was discussed at length. We acknowledge that this symbol is a powerful one which evokes often intense reactions. We have listened to the concerns of students, parents and the wider community about it. 

‘After Easter, we will conduct a review of this and, as part of that, consult with all the academy’s stakeholders to elicit their feedback. In the meantime, and until that review is concluded, the Union flag will not be flown at the academy.’

Mr Smith adds that the ‘current affairs’ aspect of the PSHE curriculum will now ensure that students are able to discuss issues that are ‘truly current’. 

He goes on: ‘Sixth Form student representatives raised concerns about certain aspects of the academy’s Uniform Policy. I was able to reassure students that their previous representations on these points had been the motivation for reflection which, in turn, resulted in revision to the relevant polices taking place. These redrafted policies are the ones I shared with you this morning and remain available to download below.’ 

The new uniform policy, brought in by Mr Smith last year, decreed that hairstyles which ‘block the view of others’ would not be allowed and hijabs ‘should not be too colourful’. The policy has now been changed to simply say that hair should be ‘neat and tidy’   

The school is run by Future Academies, a multi-academy trust which was set up by Conservative peer Lord Nash, who is on the board with his stockbroker wife Caroline. They are both on the local governing body for Pimlico Academy along with Paul Smith, Sarah Richardson and Daniel Woodruffe.   

Protesters at the school – ranked ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted at the last inspection in 2011 – on Wednesday released an extraordinary statement railing against ‘racism, Islamophobia and transphobia’ and said they were also angry about the lack of recognition for Black Lives Matter or Black History Month. 

In a long list of demands, they complained about changes to the uniform policy, including an alleged ban on ‘colourful’ hijabs, and claimed that a transgender boy had had been forced to do PE with girls.  

The list was presented to senior staff by six protesters. The trio of leadership figures, which included headteacher Daniel Smith, CEO of Future Academies Paul Smith and vice-principal Tony Oulton, agreed to the demands and took down the Union flag pending a review. 

Other changes will be made when pupils return after the Easter break, a statement from Mr Smith said. 

Future Academies founder Lord Nash had a career in venture capital before serving as a Conservative Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools and joined the House of Lords in 2013.

His wife, Lady Nash, is a co-chair of governors, and together they run the ‘Curriculum Centre’, which began working with Pimlico Academy in 2012 and helps decide what pupils will be taught across the academy chain. 

The programme centres on a traditional education, including ‘ancient history’ and ‘British history’. Over the last two years, it has launched common curriculum programmes in English Literature, English grammar, history, science, maths and Latin. 

The Future Academies’ curriculum is based upon seven principles of curriculum design, tailoring programmes to be ‘knowledge-rich, ‘domain-specific’, ‘coherent’, ‘cumulative’, ‘academically challenging’, ‘written with memory in mind’, and ‘written for novices, not experts’. 

Its ‘British History’ programme, available on the Future Academies website, outlines a study plan for ‘Great Events and People from British History’, from ‘Augustine’s Mission’ to ‘The Trial and Execution of Charles I’.

It covers significant events and individuals which have shaped the country, including Alfred the Great; The Norman Conquest; Henry II and Thomas Becket; Richard the Lionheart and Saladin the Merciful; and King John and Magna Carta. Also included are Edward I and the Conquest of Wales; The Peasants’ Revolt; Henry’s ‘Great Matter’; The Spanish Armada; and The Gunpowder Plot.

A teacher at Pimlico Academy who resigned and is set to leave this year told The Guardian that staff were feeling demoralised and had fundamental disagreements with some of the choices made by the academy trust’s leadership.

She said that she could no longer work at a school that no longer reflected her values. Roughly two weeks ago the entire geography department handed in their notices to show solidarity with a colleague who had been dismissed earlier in the year, it has been claimed.

The teacher said: ‘It is heartbreaking to know that so many exceptional teachers will be leaving at the end of the school year. Many feel their hand has been forced as their own values are no longer in line with the senior leaders in school.

She added: ‘Pimlico has a proud history of celebrating its diverse community, so to have a situation where young people do not feel represented, and staff voices are not being heard, is very sad.’

A change.org petition calling for Pimlico Academy to halt dress code changes for all year groups now has more than 1,000 signatures. It stresses that changing the sixth form dress code ‘would be acceptable if not for current circumstances’, as many pupils have already bought clothing and cannot afford to re-shop – adding that some are still wary of trying on new clothes in shops amid the Covid pandemic.

It continues: ‘Also, younger years (7-11) and some which also apply to Sixth Form are now faced with a lot of discriminatory changes, such as no facial hair, no makeup until Sixth Form and only then subtle make up, hijabs have to be black however the boys suits and girls blouses can be multicoloured, no big or long hair, girls cannot wear ‘revealing’ clothes that show their shoulders.

‘There are many more factors around things such as jewellery as well. There is not option for non-binary students either.

‘We as students have the right to express ourselves however we choose, and also have the right to have our natural hair weather it be big hair small hair or loads of facial hair or no facial hair.

‘We should be able to show our shoulders without ‘distracting the boys’.

‘We should be able to wear jewellery as some can be sentimental. We should be able to wear any coloured Hijabs we want as its part of a lot of people’s religion.

‘We should be able to have a clothing option for people who don’t want to conform to a gender.’

Speaking on Wednesday morning, one female student in year 12 said she had been inspired by Black Lives Matter to ‘speak out’ over the ‘abrupt’ changes to school policies since Mr Smith arrived in July 2020. ‘In light of Black Lives Matter, we do think that it was a responsibility of the students to speak to them and show support, as it was a very traumatic time for many of us,’ she told The Guardian. 

Even teachers have joined the uprising against Mr Smith, with up to 30 said to be planning to leave at the end of the year, and a vote of no confidence in him by the National Education Union last night. It is not clear if any teachers attended the protest. 

Mr Smith had emailed parents to say the last day before the Easter holidays would continue as normal. But with hundreds of students refusing to attend lessons parents were sent another email informing them the school would close at lunchtime. Year groups were sent home on a staggered basis with the school gates locked by 2pm.

It is the latest of a wave of demonstrations to hit British schools in recent weeks, which have included protests over ‘rape culture’ and an uprising by parents at Batley Grammar School in Yorkshire over its decision to show cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.   

Some parents have also backed the protests, with one mother with two sons in year 9 and 11 saying the school had gone ‘downhill’ since the new headteacher joined. 

She said one of her sons got a detention because his Afro hair was deemed to break the school dress code. A second parent claimed racism was ‘rife’. 

The school has since said press coverage of pupils discontent provided an opportunity for reflection, for ‘engagement in constructive dialogue’ and ‘action for change’.   

Mr Smith marked his arrival in July with a punchy open letter to parents, in which he repeated the phrase ‘it is your responsibility’ three times in one paragraph while discussing the need for parents to ensure their children complete homework, dress properly and support the academy leadership. 

Former pupils at the school include Chelsea footballer Tammy Abraham, PR executive Matthew Freud and comedian Mo Gilligan.  

Non-students joined in the action, with parents pictured outside the school gates, including one holding a placard which read: ‘I stand with Pimlico students.’

Police officers were also seen on the premises. 

The sit-down protest came following reports that a senior member of staff had asked pupils to cancel the action the day before, but this only made the teenagers more determined to take part. 

The same flag was previously taken down and burned by pupils last September.

Students claim that concerns over the flag, and recognition of Black Lives Matter or Black History Month have also been repeatedly ignored by school bosses. 

In a petition, the students claimed the uniform policy would penalise Muslims and those with afro hairstyles and demanded a change. 

A statement accompanying the petition said: ‘We as students have the right to express ourselves however we choose, and also have the right to have our natural hair weather it be big hair small hair or loads of facial hair or no facial hair. We should be able to show our shoulders without ‘distracting the boys’.

‘We should be able to wear jewellery as some can be sentimental. We should be able to wear any coloured Hijabs we want as its part of a lot of people’s religion. 

‘We should be able to have a clothing option for people who don’t want to conform to a gender. We should be able to wear as much make up as we like as it improves self confidence.

‘From year 11 up, we are more worried about what is going to happen to exams and grades. We don’t want clothing changes, we want reassurance for our learning. 

‘We still have no idea what’s going to happen during this pandemic, yet we know what clothes we can and cannot wear? This only adds more pressure to us to get new clothes and conform to the dress code.’ 

One pupil told the Guardian ahead of the protest: ‘We believe the school has unfairly targeted groups of students. 

‘The school should protect marginalised races, religions and other groups instead of target them. 

‘We should see ourselves and our backgrounds represented in our studies.’ 

Meanwhile a teacher, who has handed in her resignation at the school, told the site she felt staff voices were not being heard.  

Future Academies said: ‘This morning Pimlico Academy saw a protest by some students. The majority of students were in classrooms studying as usual throughout the protest.

It is with regret that these matters have come to a head in such a public way. We want to take this opportunity to reassure parents that this is an isolated event, and we are working to resolve the issues raised. We apologise to all children, families and staff for the disruption today.’