UK schools get tough on face-covering veils

Britain's top schools monitoring authority has instructed officials to mark down institutions as "inadequate" where face-covering veils are hampering learning, days after Prime Minister David Cameron advocated removal of face coverings at educational institutions.

Sir Michael Wilshaw, the head of the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) said he has written to all inspectors instructing them to mark down institutions if they judge the wearing of the veil is "acting as a barrier to learning and to positive social interaction".

"We want our schools, whether faith schools or non-faith schools, to prepare their pupils equally for life in 21st century Britain. We need to be confident our children's education and future prospects are not being harmed in any way," he said. "It is clearly right that if the wearing of the veil is interfering with education in schools that should trigger action from Ofsted," an Ofsted spokesperson said. This will apply to both pupils and teachers. The move comes a week after Prime Minister Cameron and UK education secretary Nicky Morgan said that individual public organisations should be free to put in place their own rules on uniforms and the issue of veils. "When you're coming into contact with an institution, or you're in court, or if you need to be able to see someone's face at the borde," Cameron said.