Petition Broaden the GCSE & A-Level English curriculum to include more BAME authors

The Petitions Committee (the group of MPs who oversee petition.parliament.uk) will hear from petition creators and other campaigners and experts in an 'evidence session' on Black history and cultural diversity. This session is the result of the petition you signed and others calling for changes to the curriculum which have received hundreds of thousands of signatures.

The Petitions Committee will be working with the Women and Equalities Committee and MPs from the Education Committee.

Find out more about the session: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/news/120411/petitions-committee-announces-joint-evidence-session-on-black-history-and-cultural-diversity-in-the-curriculum/

Watch the session live at 2.30pm on Thursday 5 November: https://youtu.be/WjwNciEYe9s

What is the Petitions Committee?

The Petitions Committee is a cross-party group of MPs that considers e-petitions submitted on Parliament’s petitions website and public (paper) petitions presented to the House of Commons. It is independent of the Government.
You can get updates on their work by following the Committee on Twitter @HoCpetitions or on their website: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/
Find out more about how petitions work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGEOraE08Jk&feature=youtu.be

Find out more about the Women and Equalities Committee:
https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/328/women-and-equalities-committee/

Find out more about the Education Committee:
https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/203/education-committee/

These are ‘select committees’. Find out how Select Committees work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2RDuDs44c

The Government has launched a consultation on ethnic disparities and inequality in the UK, and want to hear from members of the public. There are ten questions, and you can answer any or all of them.

One of the questions is: How should the school curriculum adapt in response to the ethnic diversity of the country?

You can find out more about the consultation and contribute here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/ethnic-disparities-and-inequality-in-the-uk-call-for-evidence/ethnic-disparities-and-inequality-in-the-uk-call-for-evidence

The closing date for responses is Monday 30 November 2020.

The Petitions Committee has been working jointly with the Women and Equalities Committee to look into Black history and cultural diversity in the curriculum. You can find out more about their work so far, watch the evidence sessions, and read the transcripts here:

https://committees.parliament.uk/work/739/black-history-and-cultural-diversity-in-the-curriculum/

What is the Petitions Committee?

The Petitions Committee is a cross-party group of MPs that considers e-petitions submitted on Parliament’s petitions website and public (paper) petitions presented to the House of Commons. It is independent of the Government.

Find out more about the Committee: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/

Get real-time updates on the Committee's work by following them on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/HoCPetitions

Find out more about how petitions work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGEOraE08Jk&feature=youtu.be

Find out more about the Women and Equalities Committee:
https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/328/women-and-equalities-committee/

Find out more about the Education Committee:
https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/203/education-committee/

These are ‘select committees’. Find out how Select Committees work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2RDuDs44c

On Tuesday 20 April, the Minister for Equalities Kemi Badenoch MP gave a statement to the House of Commons on the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities.

The statement follows the Government's publication of the report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-report-of-the-commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities

Watch the statement here: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/b586787a-eb7f-409b-b20e-9cb31d21ddd0?in=13:38:40

Read the transcript here: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2021-04-20/debates/1502466F-D06B-402A-B7C0-03452FFB1DA9/CommissionOnRaceAndEthnicDisparities

Ministerial statements are a way for Ministers to bring an important matter to the attention of the House. Find out more about them here: https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/business/statements/

What did the report say about the curriculum?

The Commission considered the extent to which children acquire a proper grounding in the national story, including its multi-ethnic character, and recommended that the Department for Education work with an appointed panel of independent experts to produce a well-sequenced set of teaching resources to tell the multiple, nuanced stories that have shaped the country we live in today.

Read the report's section on teaching an inclusive curriculum here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-report-of-the-commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities/education-and-training#making-of-modern-britain-teaching-an-inclusive-curriculum

What is the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities?

The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) has been set up by the Government to review inequality in the UK, focusing on areas including poverty, education, employment, health and the criminal justice system. The Commission, which is independent of the Government, will look at outcomes for the whole population.

Find out more about the Commission here: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities