Schools are still extremely racially segregated in some areas nearly ten years after race riots that led to calls for change.
The extent of the separation of children by race is shown today on a new website, Measuring Diversity, which indicates the racial make-up of schools in some areas is still far from diverse.
In Oldham, 13.5 per cent of the primary school population is from a Bangladeshi background, but just two per cent of these go to a school where the majority of children are white, it shows.
In Bradford, almost half the primary school children and 58 per cent of secondary school pupils are white, but only 2.8 per cent of white primary school children and 3.4 per cent of white secondary school pupils go to a school where they are in the minority.
More than a third of the city’s primary school children are from Pakistani families and three in 10 of the secondary school pupils. Only 1.8 per cent of them go to majority white primary schools and 5.3 per cent go to a secondary school where white pupils are in the majority.
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In Bolton primary schools which have a minority white population, 0.6 per cent of the pupils are white, 30 per cent are Pakistani and 46 per cent of Indian heritage. Almost four in five white pupils in Bolton go to primary schools dominated by white children, compared with one in 12 from Pakistani families and a similar proportion from Indian backgrounds.
And in the London borough of Lambeth, there are no primary or secondary schools with a majority white population.
The figures are worrying because riots in Bradford, Burnley and Oldham in 2001, resulted in a report that blamed deep-rooted segregation for sparking unrest and warned about the dangers of having schools catering solely for different races and cultures. David Blunkett, who was Home Secretary at the time, said all schools should seek to limit their intake from one culture or ethnicity.
About a third of schools are faith schools, but all state schools now have an obligation to promote community cohesion, and are measured by Ofsted on whether they achieve this.
The Cantle report, into the Oldham riots, warned there would be no quick solutions and made 67 recommendations. These covered areas such as education, youth and leisure facilities and regeneration.
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It warned of the dangers of the Government’s policy of encouraging single-faith schools, which might deepen the divisions.
The Education and Inspections Act 2006 places a duty on all state schools to promote community cohesion, and on Ofsted to ensure they are doing so.
Government guidance defines this as “working towards a society in which there is a common vision and sense of belonging by all communities, and in which strong and positive relationships exist and continue to be developed in the workplace, in schools and in the wider community.”
As part of this schools must “promote meaningful interactions between people from different backgrounds.”
Prof Simon Burgess, co-creator of the website and director of the Centre for Market and Public Organisation, which is affiliated to Bristol University, said: “One of the biggest questions of our times is how well individuals from different ethnic groups get along together.
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“Schools are an important place where this interaction takes place. It is a common saying that people’s attitudes are strongly influenced by their school days.
“So the peer groups that children play with, talk to and work with are important factors moulding their perspectives on society.
“The extent of ethnic diversity in schools is an important issue of public debate. This website provides some facts to enlighten this debate.’”