ONE of Blackburn’s top schools has been accused of undermining community cohesion after unveiling a controversial new admissions policy.

St Wilfrid’s CofE High School Technology College has announced a plan to increase the number of pupils from Christian backgrounds after becoming the town’s first academy.

Critics said the change could deliver a damaging blow to integration in the town.

Tauheedul Islamic Girls’ High School also plans to double in size and open a boys’ school for 11 to 18 year olds.

Critics fear the top state schools in the borough will effectively separate children with St Wilfrid's for Christians and Tauheedul for Muslims.

St. Wilfrid’s headteacher David Whyte defended the decision, saying the Duckworth Street academy was committed to community cohesion.

But he stressed the foundation of St. Wilfrid’s was to offer an Anglican education.

However, the National Union of Teachers said the move threatened to create damaging divisions that would allow extreme groups to thrive.

And professor Ted Cantle, the community cohesion expert who described Blackburn as one of the most ethnically divided towns in the country, said schools in the town needed to be more multicultural, not less, to encourage integration.

Blackburn’s councillor in charge of education said she was disappointed by St. Wilfrid’s.

But Coun Maureen Bateson said there was little she could do as academy status had freed the school from council control.

Under the coalition Government’s flagship academy scheme, St. Wilfrid’s is now independent and manages its own budget and curriculum.

Its name is being changed to St Wilfrid’s Church of England Academy.

However, the school's bosses said they were planning the admissions criteria change regardless of the academy bid.

Previously, families had to show they had attended church every fortnight for two years to be eligible for a place.

But those rules are now being relaxed to once a month for a year.

Mr Whyte said this would help tackle an ‘under-subscription’ of Christian applications at the school, which currently has 20 per cent of its roll from non-Christian faiths.

He said he could not predict what impact the change could have.

Mr Whyte said: “We may find that we have no additional Christian applications and more from other faiths or no faiths.

“Moving back to a monthly criteria will enable many Christian families from within Blackburn, who for the last three years have had to apply for a Christian education elsewhere, to feel they have a real chance of securing a place at the Academy.

“The foundation of the school is to offer an Anglican education for students within Blackburn diocese.

“Families from other faiths will continue to have priority over families without sufficient evidence of church attendance.

“We are committed to the church ethos of bringing people together and we respect other faiths.

“St Wilfrid’s has one of the most open admissions policy of any faith secondary school within the country.

“If current demand continues, the academy will continue to welcome students from other faiths.”

Mr Whyte stressed that special education needs pupils, children from its feeder school St Luke’s and St Philip’s Primary School, and siblings of current pupils of whatever faith, remained their top three priorities in the new admission policy.

These are then followed by Christian faith and catchment area.

In addition to the changes at St Wilfrid’s, Tauheedul Islamic Girls’ High School is due to move to the site of Beardwood High School by 2015, doubling in size to 600 pupils.

At the same time, Tauheedul bosses plan to open a new school in the vacated Bicknell Street site catering for boys aged 11 to 18.

It is expected there will be 75 pupils in each year group.

REACTION

THE National Union of Teachers, mosque leader, cohesion expert and education boss joined forces to express concern at St Wilfrid’s admissions policy change.

Simon Jones, Blackburn with Darwen representative for the NUT, said: "We have been warning that this would be damaging to community cohesion.

"One of the motivations for St Wilfrid's to become an academy was so that it could fiddle its admission arrangements and compete for the 'white high ground.'

“They are undermining community cohesion and creating divisions which will allow racists and fascists like the BNP and EDL to thrive.

"It is equally worrying that Tauheedul is opening a boys school which will create further divisions.”

Prof Ted Cantle conducted a six-month study of Blackburn before publishing a stark report on community cohesion in the town which formed the cornerstone of how the borough is tackling integration issues.

Prof Cantle, executive chair of the Institute of Community Cohesion, said: “It does sound a bit like they are becoming increasing desperate to attract more Christian families and are changing the criteria. I hope that is not the case.

”Children are growing up in an increasingly multi-cultural society and are experiencing cultures and faiths and other groups.

“I would urge all the schools in Blackburn to become much more multicultural in their links not just with children but for their parents and the wider community that are brought together by the schools.”

Maureen Bateson, executive member for children's services at Blackburn Council, said she would be disappointed if the change meant fewer non-Christians at the school.

She said: “Cohesion is a big issue in this borough and the more segregation there is the more work we will have to do to bring communities together.

"They need to strive to offer access to all members of the community and I am afraid this could be a reflection on government policy and because they are now an academy there is very little we can do about it."

Salim Mulla, chairman of Lancashire Council of Mosques, said it sent out the wrong signals.

He added: “I am very disappointed that the school is taking these measures.

"We have always said that schools should be more accessible to all different sections of the community. St Wilfrid's need to think carefully about this move and understand that this is not helpful at all in promoting community cohesion.”

Blackburn MP, Jack Straw, said he understood the concerns but it was reasonable for faith schools to have an admissions criteria.

He said: “I do understand the concerns that are being raised with regards to St Wilfrid's.

"Even if a school has a completely neutral admissions policy it is inevitable for them to reach a tipping point with a majority of white or Asian pupils.

"I would like to see more integration but it cannot be forced by social engineering. ”