Come Autumn Term 2016/17, good reason for Kwuggies to leaflet outside a Wembley Park 'free school'

Thanks to Wembley Matters blogger Martin Francis for bringing this Daily Mail story to the attention of non-Daily Mail readers:(1)

"Michaela Secondary Free School punishes children for having hard-up parents
"I suspect not many of my readers also read the Daily Mail so here is a brief summary of an on-line story carried by the Mail LINK.(2)

"Katharine Birbalsingh who hit the headlines when she became Michael Gove's darling after she told a Tory Conference that the education system was broken based on her experience at a London secondary school, is head of Michaela Secondary Free School in Wembley Park.  The school advertises its strict discipline policy and 'private school ethos' and has a laudatory comment from Boris Johnson hanging on its exterior.

"The Mail story is not about the school's strict umbrella code (black or navy blue only) or its service to parents whereby they can text pictures of school shoes they are about to buy for approval LINK, but about its attitude towards the children of hard-up families.(3)

"Superhead who claimed Britain's education was broken puts pupils in detention at lunch and restricts food if their parents have failed to pay for school meals

"The Mail reveals that children whose parents are behind with meal payments are put in lunch isolation, being made to sit on their own for the whole lunch hour, and are given a sandwich instead of a hot meal with dessert.

"The Mail quotes a letter from the deputy headteacher, Barry Smith, to unemployed care worker Dionne Kelly. Dione had paid by the time she received the letter but her child was punished anyway:

'The deadline for this term's lunch payment was 1st June 2016. You are currently £75 overdue. If this full amount is not received within this week your child will be placed into Lunch isolation.

'They will receive a sandwich and a piece of fruit only. Only when the outstanding sum is paid in full will they be allowed to eat lunch with their classmates.'

"Birbalsingh told the Mail that the letter was sent in an attempt to encourage the parent to change her ways and support her son by paying for his food.

"Sam Royston of the Children's Society said, 'No school should punish and potentially stigmatise a child because a parent has not paid for, or is unable to afford, school meals.'"

Dude Swheatie of Kwug comments: Because this school head was such a darling of a previous Conservative Party Conference, maybe we should hold a demonstration of some sort outside that school during the week of Conservative & Unionist Party Autumn Conference 2016, and get the Brent & Kilburn Times involved?

Source link addresses

1. http://wembleymatters.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/michaela-secondary-free-school-punishes.html
2. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3713583/Superhead-claimed-Britain-s-education-broken-puts-pupils-detention-lunch-restricts-food-parents-failed-pay-school-meals.html
3. http://wembleymatters.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/will-breathing-be-allowed-in.html