Nursery World - Youngest pupils encounter race abuse

Children as young as five are among the victims of racist attacks in schools, according to figures released last week by East Dunbartonshire local authority in Scotland. The council said that the number of alleged racist incidents among primary school children had doubled in the past two years.

The council said that the number of alleged racist incidents among primary school children had doubled in the past two years.

There were 28 incidents of racism recorded in primary schools between April and June this year. The majority of them related to name-calling and racist jokes, as well as four allegations of one child pushing another.

East Dunbartonshire Council said the rise in figures showed that more children felt confident enough to report incidents to teachers. A spokesperson said, 'We take all forms of alleged racism seriously. By encouraging young people to come forward and by providing teachers with a robust reporting mechanism, we are giving a strong message that we are working to combat this issue.'

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