Michaela Community School is facing a legal challenge at the High Court from a Muslim student who claims the policy is discriminatory. The Times reported yesterday (January 18) that the unnamed student secured legal aid for the judicial review, estimated to cost between £100,000 and £150,000. Jason Coppel KC, representing the Michaela School Community Trust – the school's governing body – on Wednesday (January 17), claimed that during March 2023, “Muslim children were observed to be applying peer pressure to other Muslim children to act in certain ways”. In a statement posted to X, headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh, defended the school’s policy, claiming it “restored calm and order to the school”. But in her legal action against the school, the student claims the decision “banning prayer rituals” breaches her right to freedom of religion.

Source: The Times January 20, 2024 12:17 UTC