Last week, a campaign orchestrated by the National Education Union (NEU) involving primary school students distributing leaflets at the Labour Party conference faced backlash. What does the legislation stipulate?
Schools Week delves into the details…
What transpired?
Approximately 100 children from primary schools in Liverpool participated in handing out leaflets advocating for an expansion of free school meals for all pupils at the Labour conference held in their city.
The children also presented a petition, capturing more than 20,000 signatures, to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
The event, organized by the NEU, received criticism from right-leaning media outlets.
GB News reported under the headline: “Children from six schools used in Trade Union protest at Labour conference, prompting outrage.”
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch condemned the involvement of primary school children, stating it was inappropriate for them to be “used as a political football.”
What does the legislation indicate?
The Department for Education’s Working Together To Improve School Attendance statutory guidelines make it clear that schools should not permit a student’s absence for participation in protest activities during school hours.
Additionally, rules concerning political neutrality state that it is “not appropriate for a teacher to encourage students to join a specific campaigning group or engage in particular political activities, such as attending a protest.”
The NEU has claimed that the children were not protesting. However, reports of the event showed children shouting “free school meals for all” while distributing materials to conference delegates.
A spokesperson for the union stated that the “leafleting event served as a chance for the children to engage with the democratic process and interact with MPs as part of their education.” They explained that it “occupied a small portion of the school day.”
The NEU asserted that parental consent was obtained for every participating pupil, and the schools were “satisfied that this trip did not violate any protocols.”
However, the schools involved, including Monksdown, Fazakerley, Liverpool Bank View, and Holy Name Primary, did not provide comments when approached by Schools Week.
The Department for Education confirmed that “guidance is explicit that children should not be permitted leave to attend protests during school hours,” noting that such attendance would typically be treated as unauthorized absence and would detract from the critical importance of attendance in enhancing standards for all students.
They did not address whether any actions had been taken against the participating schools.
What do legal experts say?
Legal professionals concur that the incident breached established guidelines.
Per attendance guidance, absences may be granted in “exceptional circumstances” for educational activities. Acceptable examples provided by the government include attending transition days at different schools or participating in courses at colleges.
John Walker, a partner at PHP Law, remarked: “Upon reviewing the [attendance] code, it seems undeniable this constitutes unauthorized attendance.”
He highlighted that schools face the challenge of determining where to draw the line regarding what qualifies as an educational activity if they argue that attending a political party conference is acceptable.
“This complicates matters significantly for any school trying to navigate this terrain. For instance, if a parent posits that attending a Labour Party conference is an educational event, could a similar claim be made for an event associated with someone like Tommy Robinson?”
Melissa Haskell, a partner at Knights, indicated that teachers are “well aware of the regulations surrounding the necessity of political neutrality.” She added, “Encouraging this type of engagement can lead to potential oversteps.”
Haskell noted that by attending a party conference—rather than a gathering that includes representatives from multiple parties—schools expose the children to solely the information disseminated by the Labour Party Conference.
“Is it impartial? Is it balanced? The answer must be no,” she emphasized.
The NEU pointed out that 37,938 children in Liverpool are living in poverty, a figure that surpasses the national average by six percent.
A spokesperson from the Department for Education remarked: “While schools should educate children on national and global events and their implications, and children should engage in civic and democratic activities, this engagement must not compromise political neutrality or interfere with a child’s education, as outlined in our guidance.”
