Ofsted has launched an investigation into the Bristol school that cancelled a visit from a Jewish MP.
Damien Egan was said to have been prevented from visiting Bristol Brunel Academy in his constituency due to intervention from pro-Palestinian activists.
Mr Egan serves as vice-chair of Labour Friends of Israel and has travelled to the Middle Eastern nation since the conflict in Gaza began, which made him a target for pro-Palestinian activists.
Ofsted chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver claims the school “may have been intimidated into cancelling a visit”.
“I was concerned to learn that a school may have been intimidated into cancelling a visit from their local MP,” he said.
“I am troubled by the message this sends to children – especially children from the Jewish community.
“Those of us privileged enough to be working in education have a professional and moral duty to stand against discrimination.”
Sir Martyn added, after considering the evidence, it had been concluded an inspection was necessary and inspectors attended the school on Thursday.
Ofsted has launched an investigation into the Bristol school that cancelled a visit from a Jewish MP
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GETTYThe Bristol Palestine Solidarity Campaign openly opposed Mr Egan’s school visit because of his stance on Israel.
The group celebrated the cancellation on social media, declaring it “a clear message” that politicians backing Israel’s actions in Gaza “are not welcome in our schools.”
They said concerns had been raised by the National Education Union staff group, parents and local constituents.
A spokesman for the Cabot Learning Federation, which runs the school, said: “We take our responsibilities to educate young people about British values extremely seriously, which is why we invited Mr Egan to speak to our students in the first place.
Cabot Learning Federation, which runs the school, has spoken out
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GOOGLE“Whilst we took the decision to postpone the visit due to concerns about student safety and the disruption to their education from the planned protest, a date for the rescheduled visit had already been confirmed by Mr Egan’s office.
“This was long before any of the most recent concerns were raised.”
Sr Keir Starmer branded the incident as “very serious” and “very concerning” in Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday.
“We do take this seriously,” he added. “We are providing more funding for security and support we’re putting in across the country, and we will be holding to account those who prevented this visit to this school.”
The visit was scrapped just hours before it was scheduled to take place on September 5.
Mr Egan, a former student of the Cabot Learning Federation academy trust, had been invited to speak with pupils about democracy and life in Parliament.
He confirmed the cancellation but chose not to comment further.
Bristol Brunel Academy explained they learned about a planned demonstration outside the school the evening before Egan’s scheduled appearance.
A spokesman said: “As this protest was scheduled to coincide with the end of the school day, we opted to postpone Mr Egan’s visit to ensure everyone would continue to feel safe when entering and exiting school and to prevent any disruption to our students’ learning.”
The school stressed Mr Egan had been invited as a successful former pupil of the academy trust, alongside other local MPs from different parties.