Calls to include Black history and cultural diversity in the curriculum – Petitions Committee announces joint evidence session

Three Select Committees will hear evidence on Black history and cultural diversity in the national curriculum after hundreds of thousands signed petitions calling on the government to diversify and decolonise the curriculum.

A joint evidence session will be held by the Petitions Committee, Women and Equalities Select Committee and members of the Education Committee on 5 November following several popular petitions on this issue.

The petition Teach Britain’s colonial past as part of the UK’s compulsory curriculum, which has received more than 267,000 signatures to date, is among those that have led to the session, which will include evidence from Prof Rhiannon Turner from The School That Tried To End Racism documentary and Eleshea Williams from The Black Curriculum campaign group. The Committee will also hear from petitioners at the start of the session.

The petition states: “Currently, it is not compulsory for primary or secondary school students to be educated on Britain’s role in colonisation, or the transatlantic slave trade.

“We petition the government to make education on topics such as these compulsory, with the ultimate aim of a far more inclusive curriculum.

“Now, more than ever, we must turn to education and history to guide us.”

Two other petitions, Add education on diversity and racism to all school curriculums and Making the UK education curriculum more inclusive of BAME history, have also received more than 114,500 signatures combined.

Ahead of scheduling a debate on these petitions, the Committee has agreed to work jointly with the Women and Equalities Committee to hear oral evidence on the issues that these petitions raise.

Today from 2.30pm, the Petitions Committee will hear oral evidence about Black history and cultural diversity in the curriculum. Rosamund McNeil, Assistant General Secretary of the National Education Union, will speak on a panel which also features representatives of The Black Curriculum, the Historical Association and backers of recent Parliament.uk petitions.

Commenting ahead of the session, Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:

“This is an important conversation. Over 400,000 signatures were added to the petitions which the Petitions Committee will hear evidence on today. This reflects a widespread desire that we must respond to the everyday racism experienced by Black students and make plans about how education can be part of that change.

“During Covid, and also afterwards, we’ve got to think better about what makes students feel connected or unconnected to their learning, positive or not about their future. We’ve got to talk actively about the deeply entrenched attitudes which underpin racism, within classrooms.

“There are good ideas in the country and excellent existing resources that the Government can harness. Part of the way forward is creating more time within school life for young people to talk about the social issues in local communities, so students can find their voice and develop a sense of agency about their future.”

Catherine McKinnell MP, Chair of the Petitions Committee, said:

“I am pleased that the Petitions Committee is able to hold this joint evidence session with the Women and Equalities Committee and members of the Education Committee on such an important issue. This joint work allows us to delve deeper into issues of concern to petitioners which cut across policy areas.

“In the last few months, petitions calling for greater diversity in the National Curriculum have seen more than 390,000 signatures. Although the Government’s response to one of these petitions states that the curriculum provides teachers with ‘opportunities…to teach about Britain’s role in colonisation and the transatlantic slave trade’, many petitioners feel this does not go far enough in ensuring that students experience a fully diverse education all year round.

“I look forward to working with colleagues from other Committees to examine these issues in more detail.”

Caroline Nokes MP, Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee said:

“To tackle racism and create a more equal and just society, we must understand and learn from the past. That starts in schools, with a more inclusive history curriculum. The sheer number of signatures these petitions have received show the strength of feeling on these issues. The Woman and Equalities Committee wants to work with the Petitions Committee and colleagues on the Education Committee to explore this in more detail.”

The evidence sessions will take place virtually and will follow the below timetable:

Thu 5 November (2.30pm)

Panel 1  – Petitioners

1. Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson and Nell Bevan – Teach Britain’s colonial past as part of the UK’s compulsory curriculum 
2. Cynthia Muthoni – Add education on diversity and racism to all school curriculums 
3. Yacoub Yasin – Making the UK education curriculum more inclusive of BAME history 

Panel 2 

1. Eleshea Williams – Media and Communications Manager, The Black Curriculum
2. Dr Katherine Burn – Associate Professor of Education, Department of Education, University of Oxford and Deputy President, Historical Association
3. Rosamund McNeil – Assistant General Secretary, National Education Union
4. Professor Rhiannon Turner – Professor, School of Psychology, Queen’s University Belfast (featured in The School that Tried to End Racism)

In response to the petition Teach Britain’s colonial past as part of the UK’s compulsory curriculum, the Government said: “The history curriculum at Key Stage 3 includes the statutory theme “ideas, political power, industry and empire: Britain 1745-1901”. Topics within statutory themes are chosen by schools and teachers.”

Petition details

• Teach Britain’s colonial past as part of the UK’s compulsory curriculum – view on signature map
• Add education on diversity and racism to all school curriculums – view on signature map
• Making the UK education curriculum more inclusive of BAME history – view on signature map

The top 10 parliamentary constituencies that supported the petition ‘Teach Britain’s colonial past as part of the UK’s compulsory curriculum’ are as follows (as at 23 October 2020):

The top 10 parliamentary constituencies that supported the petition ‘Add education on diversity and racism to all school curriculums’ are as follows (as at 23 October 2020):

The top 10 parliamentary constituencies that supported the petition ‘Making the UK education curriculum more inclusive of BAME history’ are as follows (as at XX October 2020):

The Petitions Committee is set up by the House of Commons to look at e-petitions and public (paper) petitions. It can:

1. Ask for more information in writing—from petitioners, the Government, or other relevant people or organisations
2. Ask for more information in person—from petitioners, the Government, or other relevant people or organisations. This might be in Parliament or somewhere else in the UK
3. Write to the Government or another public body to press for action on a petition
4. Ask another parliamentary committee to look into the topic raised by a petition
5. Put forward petitions for debate in the House of Commons

The Committee is currently made up of 11 backbench Members of Parliament from Government and Opposition parties. The number of seats each party has is calculated to reflect the membership of the House as a whole.

The Chair of the Committee was elected on 29 January 2020. The members of the Committee are:

1. Catherine McKinnell (Chair) – Labour
2. Martyn Day – Scottish National Party
3. Elliot Colburn – Conservative
4. Jonathan Gullis – Conservative
5. Chris Evans – Labour
6. Katherine Fletcher – Conservative
7. Nick Fletcher – Conservative
8. Mike Hill – Labour
9. Tom Hunt – Conservative
10. Tonia Antoniazzi – Labour
11. Theresa Villiers – Conservative