'No meat' Hindu school place offer 'outrages' parents
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'No meat' Hindu school place offer 'outrages' parents
By Sejal Asar
BBC Asian Network
Avanti Court Primary School
The mixed school provides education for four to 11-year-olds
Christian and Muslim parents in east London have been left "outraged" after their children were allocated places at a Hindu school with a no meat policy.
Twenty-one children were overlooked for their six preferred primary schools and were instead given places at Avanti Court Primary School in Barkingside.
The 11 children whose parents refused Avanti have no place for September.
Redbridge Council said none of the children would be of statutory school age before January.
Avanti Court Primary School has declined to comment.
'Meditation and yoga'
Naz Qureshi, the Muslim mother of a four-year-old from South Woodford, said: "I was gob smacked and outraged when they told me I didn't get any of my six chosen choices of schools."
Liz Beck said she was concerned her son would struggle to fit in
"I didn't want her to go to a Hindu school so I am surprised the council would think I would accept a faith school which I didn't even apply for."
Liz Beck, also from South Woodford, said her four-year-old son would struggle to fit in.
She said: "Culturally it's quite different and even though we don't want to shelter our son we feel it would be difficult for him to be in that environment where it's quite different from what we believe".
"The school says there's a strict no meat policy and that they practice meditation and yoga, which we are not comfortable with."
"I feel really angry and just let down, you would expect your child to get into a school they can at least walk too."
But one parent whose children do go to the school said it offered a positive environment for all children and another said "anyone who gets a place at the Avanti Court is extremely lucky".
Under current law, children in England must be in education from the term after their fifth birthday, but the law also allows for pupils to start school earlier.
The Department for Education said: "All parents have the right to appeal against the refusal of a place at any school."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-28131933
By Sejal Asar
BBC Asian Network
Avanti Court Primary School
The mixed school provides education for four to 11-year-olds
Christian and Muslim parents in east London have been left "outraged" after their children were allocated places at a Hindu school with a no meat policy.
Twenty-one children were overlooked for their six preferred primary schools and were instead given places at Avanti Court Primary School in Barkingside.
The 11 children whose parents refused Avanti have no place for September.
Redbridge Council said none of the children would be of statutory school age before January.
Avanti Court Primary School has declined to comment.
'Meditation and yoga'
Naz Qureshi, the Muslim mother of a four-year-old from South Woodford, said: "I was gob smacked and outraged when they told me I didn't get any of my six chosen choices of schools."
Liz Beck said she was concerned her son would struggle to fit in
"I didn't want her to go to a Hindu school so I am surprised the council would think I would accept a faith school which I didn't even apply for."
Liz Beck, also from South Woodford, said her four-year-old son would struggle to fit in.
She said: "Culturally it's quite different and even though we don't want to shelter our son we feel it would be difficult for him to be in that environment where it's quite different from what we believe".
"The school says there's a strict no meat policy and that they practice meditation and yoga, which we are not comfortable with."
"I feel really angry and just let down, you would expect your child to get into a school they can at least walk too."
But one parent whose children do go to the school said it offered a positive environment for all children and another said "anyone who gets a place at the Avanti Court is extremely lucky".
Under current law, children in England must be in education from the term after their fifth birthday, but the law also allows for pupils to start school earlier.
The Department for Education said: "All parents have the right to appeal against the refusal of a place at any school."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-28131933
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Comments
Of far more concern is that it is a religious school, all state schools (paid for by the tax payer) should be secular. This is still of course no different to a "Hindu or atheist child" being made to go to a Christian school.
Sounds pretty good to me.
No different to only Halal or Kosher meat served in Islamic and Jewish schools. Why are people up in arms? So its OK to have a halal or Kosher policy for school dinners but not OK to have only vegetarian for Hindu schools. Personally we should stop pandering to all religious schools and adhere to secularism.
Me too. I am a vegetarian.
They should all be made to eat bacon sandwiches they don't know what they are missing out and its the biggest temptation to converted veggies
Not me. I could never eat meat. I was born a vegetarian. My brothers went on to eat meat but I have stayed a veggie. Cant stand the smell of bacon. Cant walk past a butchers without feeling sick. Having said that I do not pander to any religious dogma:D
How can you resist the smell of it think of the nice thick bread and plenty of brown sauce as well
The same thing is happening in Slough - at the Khalsa Sikh Secondary.
Keep it simple - don't allocate places at faith schools to parents who haven't chosen it.
The problem is clearly in the way the council allocates school places.
Collective worship includes Kirtan (chanting mantras), meditation and prayer.
But i feel strongly that religion has no place in Britain's education system, if families wish to teach/practice it outside of school, whatever, but school is for learning about REAL stuff!
Hindu religion believes in karma and reincarnation.
Traditional attitudes on disability can be that it is a result of parental sin or sins in the disabled person's previous life. Likewise traditional attitudes on caste and poverty can be of karma.
In UK Citizenship survey results Hindu also rate the second lowest on charitable giving, below those of no religion, Buddhist are the lowest. On volunteering practicing Hindu scores barely above those of No religion, and non practicing Hindu scores lowest of all and below those of no religion.
It is a religion at odds with Christianity, from how Christianity views poverty and disability, to what Christianity considers virtuous behaviour, the greatest virtue in Christianity being charitable giving.
Faith schools... what a moronic idea. Richard Dawkins must be turning in his grave.
Essentially most kids at break time eat crisps, chocolate, bananas, oranges, apples which are all veggie.
At lunch time chips and margarita pissa-i know s isn't the right spelling but for some reason my comp doesn't type the proper letter!, baked spuds and beans or mushroom soup dipped in bread will probably be being served.
I doubt many kids will have a problem with the above.