Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the withdrawal of pupils from Parkfield School because their parents did not want them to attend lessons about LGBT rights and homophobia, what consideration they have given to suspending the requirement for such lessons in order to carry out a consultation with parents and schools into the provision of such lessons.

The department is actively engaged in the situation at Parkfield Community School where parents are objecting to an educational programme, No Outsiders, which contains elements of teaching around lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. Parkfield Community School have stated that, as previously planned, there will be no further teaching of the No Outsiders programme for the remainder of the school term, and that they will be undertaking a consultation with parents during this time.

Senior officials from the Regional School Commissioner’s Office have been on site regularly since the start of this issue and are working to facilitate conversations between the community, the academy and Excelsior Multi Academy Trust. They are already working closely with the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill, Birmingham City Council and Birmingham Education Partnership to resolve the conflict and, as such, end pupil absences as soon as possible.