‘White privilege’ term linked to neglect, say MPS

TERMINOLOGY like “white privilege” may have contributed towards a “systemic neglect” of white working-class pupils who need support, MPS have said.

The Commons Education Select Committee said schools should consider whether the promotion of such “politically controversial” terminology is consistent with their duties under the Equality Act 2010.

Disadvantaged white pupils have been badly let down by “muddled” policy thinking and the Department for Education has failed to acknowledge the extent of the problem, the report said.

The MPS made a series of recommendations to improve white working-class pupils’ outcomes, including finding “a better way to talk about racial disparities” to avoid pitting different groups against each other.

The committee agreed with the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities that the term “white privilege” can be “divisive”.

The report highlighted that 47 per cent of free school meal-eligible white British pupils did not meet the expected standard of development at the end of the early years foundation stage in 2018/19 – 28,000 children.

However, Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “We’re not quite sure why the committee has chosen to enter the debate about the widely discredited report from the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities, and the term ‘white privilege’. This does not seem helpful and is likely to divert attention from the rest of the report.”