CLASS HATRED

60 per day suspended for racism

- SASKIA ROWLANDS and MATTHEW DAVIS

THOUSANDS of pupils, some as young as four, were sent home for racism last year.

With schools reopening this week, campaigners want action to stem the tide of hatred in classrooms, amid fears bigotry has become "normalised".

They say impressionable youngsters are repeating in the classroom what they hear from their parents and from right-wing figures in the media.

In all, 11,619 children were suspended for racist behaviour in 2023 up 25% on the previous 12 months, and equivalent to almost 60 suspensions a day.

Shockingly, 1,413 were still at primary school, with seven incidents logged against kids as young as four.

Dr Shabna Begum, who heads racism think-tank the Runnymede Trust, said: "The fact that children and young people are picking up and articulating racism in schools feels entirely predictable in this current climate.