London: An Indian-origin school principal, often referred to as “Britain’s strictest headmistress”, on Tuesday welcomed a UK High Court ruling that upheld her ban on prayer rituals after a Muslim pupil sought to legally challenge it as discriminatory.
Katherine Birbalsingh, of Indo-Guyanese heritage, had told the court that Michaela School – a “secular” secondary school for boys and girls in Wembley, north London – did not allow religious prayers in keeping with its ethos of promoting an “inclusive environment”. While half of the pupils at the school are Muslims, it also has large numbers of Sikh, Hindu and Christian pupils.
“As the Governing Body is aware, the School does not provide a prayer room for use by pupils, for various reasons. These reasons include that a prayer room would foster division amongst pupils, contrary to the School’s ethos, lack of available space and available staff to supervise pupils and that pupils would miss important School activities,” Birbalsingh told the court.