THE Lancashire Council of Mosques said Muslims are being ‘picked on’ over claims schools will be rated ‘inadequate’ if pupils and staff wear face veils.

Chairman Abdul Qureshi made the comments after Sir Michael Wilshaw, the chief inspector of Ofsted, gave ‘full support’ to schools and colleges which ‘decide to take a stand against the inappropriate wearing of the veil’.

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Some critics claim the veil can hinder learning in a school setting.

Sir Michael has also been criticised by the teaching unions in East Lancashire.

Education secretary Nicky Morgan has previously backed schools that want to ban Muslim girls from wearing face veils and suggested teachers should also be barred from wearing the garments.

Mr Qureshi has branded the comments as ‘unhelpful’ and called for the education watchdog to stop ‘picking on’ Muslims in the region.

He said: “It appears that Muslims are being picked on and this needs to stop now.

“These comments from Ofsted are not helpful, not necessary and are agitating people.

“It is only a small number of the population who choose to wear a veil and I’m not aware of any problem in East Lancashire that schools have had with students wearing a veil.”

However, former Blackburn MP Jack Straw said that it would be wrong for Ofsted to ignore any communication issue with staff or students if it was hindering learning.

Mr Straw hit the headlines in 2006 after saying that he felt ‘uneasy’ talking to someone he could not fully see.

He said: “It would be wrong to mark down a school just because people were wearing a veil but it would also be wrong for Ofsted to ignore any issues.”

Cllr Dave Harling, Schools boss for Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: “This is a matter for individual schools and the school’s leadership and I trust any decision they make would be made in the best interests of their pupils and staff.

“However, I think this needs to be looked at in more detail to question whether it would be appropriate for a potentially outstanding school to be marked down to inadequate on the basis of this factor alone.”