Islamophobia continues to be an under-researched and oft-ignored issue in public life. As with everything in public policy, research and decision-making, where we see the most acute impact of this is often in schools.
School-based solutions are often wrongly touted as the answer to all of our problems. However, it is hard to ignore the correlation (and negative cumulative impact) between anti-Muslim sentiment, the mental health of young Muslims, and the mental health epidemic in schools more generally.
This is especially true due to the fact that one in 12 children in British schools is of Muslim background. With the latest census data showing a growth of people identifying as Muslim in the UK – a religion which possesses the youngest age profile and for which transmission of faith and values is the highest among all faiths in the UK – it is clear that there is a increasing number of Muslim children and young people with a strong sense of religious identity and holding faith-driven values in British schools. While this is often used as a tool to whip up moral panic and existential fear, it is actually cause for celebration, hope and of course opportunity.
As with all school-related anxieties, what’s often framed as the ‘Muslim problem’ in this context actually speaks of something greater regarding our social values and the future direction of our country. This in fact underscores the latent and unexplored potential of young Muslims in schools. The demographic layout of Muslims in inner-city conurbations has natural implications on workforce profile, pointing to the fact that Muslims are integral to our social and economic prosperity.
