Some say more schools may ban organised prayer after court ruling but others say judgment was based on unique circumstances

The ruling on a prayer ban at a top London school has created a “classic English policy muddle” that has divided school leaders over its implications, with some experts predicting that more schools could ban organised prayers as a result.

The warning came after a high court judge upheld the ban at Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, dismissing a challenge by a Muslim pupil who claimed it was discriminatory and breached her right to religious freedom.

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We would like to hear from Muslims in the UK about theirs or their children’s experiences of prayer at school

A Muslim pupil has lost their high court appeal against Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, over its ban on prayer rituals . The pupil had claimed the ban was discriminatory and breached her right to religious freedom.

We would like to hear from Muslims in the UK about their experiences of prayer when they were at school. We’re particularly interested in hearing from Muslims aged 18 or over who were able to pray at school in the UK and parents who are comfortable with sharing their children’s experiences.

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Charity that uses football to help pupils build relationships found to improve happiness in Greater Manchester project

Intensive mentoring for troubled schoolchildren using football kickabouts has significantly increased wellbeing, delivering happiness boosts equivalent to an unemployed adult getting a job, a study has found.

A project involving more than 2,000 pupils in dozens of secondary schools in Greater Manchester showed that instead of wellbeing declining among pupils at risk of exclusion who had behavioural issues and special educational needs, their happiness scores increased.

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Schools say increasing numbers of children are turning up sick because of dire housing conditions – if they turn up at all

Some children living in dire housing conditions have been woken up by chesty coughs caused by damp, others by the smell of sewage leaking down their walls. Toby* was woken by rats on his chest.

“It was midnight and he came to me crying,” said his mother, who does not want to be named. He is one of more than 3,800 children living in temporary accommodation in Lewisham, the council with the 10th highest number of children living in such housing in the UK.

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Kids pausing their football so a friend can pray; theology chats over lunch – I’ve seen the richness that religious diversity brings to school life

A Muslim student at Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, has lost a high court challenge to the school’s ban on prayer rituals. As a Muslim secondary schoolteacher, I have to say I am disappointed – but not surprised.

The appeal was lost on the grounds that the school declares itself secular. This is something the headteacher, Katharine Birbalsingh, insists all students and parents know when applying. In the written judgment dismissing the student’s case, Mr Justice Linden went as far as to say that: “The claimant at the very least impliedly accepted, when she enrolled at the school, that she would be subject to restrictions on her ability to manifest her religion.”

Nadeine Asbali is a secondary school teacher in London and the author of Veiled Threat: On Being Visibly Muslim in Britain

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Michaela community school, run by former government social mobility tsar Katharine Birbalsingh, introduced ban last March

A ban on prayer rituals at one of the highest-performing state schools in England, famous for its strict discipline code and high-profile headteacher, was not unlawful, a high court judge has ruled.

The case against Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, was brought by a Muslim pupil, known only as TTT in court proceedings, who claimed the ban was discriminatory and breached her right to religious freedom.

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Teacher retention problems particularly acute in larger Mats, analysis finds

Multi-academy trusts (Mats) in England have significantly higher annual turnover of classroom teachers at secondary level than schools maintained by local authorities, analysis has found.

Teacher recruitment and retention is a challenge facing all schools but the problem is particularly acute in larger Mats where annual teacher turnover stands at 19.5% on average compared with just 14.4% at the median local authority, the research showed.

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The Beaks are among the families in England and Wales who have faced fines over health-related school absences

Chloe Beak lives with chronic, debilitating migraines, which leave her unable to attend school for days at a time. But instead of receiving support from her school, her parents have been fined by the local authority for her truancy.

The family’s current fix is to send their daughter in with a migraine until she gets sent home, meaning her absences are registered as authorised. If they do not, the school will consider her a truant as it believes she has emotionally based school avoidance.

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London mayor expected to criticise Susan Hall in speech launching panels on school roofs

Sadiq Khan will accuse his Conservative rival in the race to be London’s next mayor of being “Trumpian” over the climate crisis, as he announces plans for solar panels on schools.

Khan is expected to acknowledge resistance to his expansion of the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) in a speech on Friday but insist that he still intends to “go further”.

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