White children outnumbered at primary, secondary level

LONDON: White children in UK schools are outnumbered by those from ethnic minority families at the primary and secondary level in 29 of the 150 local education authority areas including Birmingham, Leicester, Luton, Slough and most London boroughs.

In some parts of the capital, children from ethnic minority families account for more than nine in ten school places.

The figures were released on Friday as the government statistics showed it had underestimated the number of immigrants expected to come to Britain by one-third.

Some 190,000 were now expected to arrive every year, an increase of 45,000 a year, due to a surge in people from eastern Europe.

The latest figures threatened to turn immigration into a key issue at the next general election as Liam Byrne, the immigration minister, said the new assumptions 'show what could happen unless we take action now.'

"Frankly, it underlines the need for swift and sweeping changes to the system in the next 12 months," he said.

Figures from the Department for Children, Schools and Families showed that last year saw the biggest year-on-year increase in pupils from ethnic minorities.

Across the country, they accounted for almost 22 per cent of pupils at primary school compared to 20.6 per cent last year.

At secondary  level, numbers rose at a similar rate to 17.7 per cent.

According to the study, one in eight pupils, about 800,000, do not speak English as a first language and such numbers have doubled in the past decade.

The Government has said that English should be the main language of teaching in schools and children should become fluent as quickly as possible.

Research suggests that although pupils who are not native speakers struggle at first, most make up any lost ground by the time they reach secondary school.