Muslim faith school wins 'mass support': Igra Academy a first for Stoke-on-Trent
HUNDREDS of parents are backing plans to open Stoke-on-Trent's first state-funded Muslim faith school.
A bid to create the free school, which would be known as the Iqra Academy, was submitted to the Government this week.
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Residents gathered in Normacot to discuss plans for the Muslim school.
Now community leaders behind the proposals will have to wait until March to find out if they have got through to the crucial next stage of the application process.
They stressed today they were keen to attract families from all faiths, although the secondary school would have an Islamic ethos.
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The Sentinel first revealed plans for the new free school last month.
Since then, almost 500 people have responded to a questionnaire and parents from across the city have expressed an interest in sending their children there.
If it wins approval, the Iqra Academy would open in September 2014 and would eventually cater for around 600 pupils, aged 11 to 16.
The Iqra Welfare Trust, which is leading the bid, hopes to take over the former Edensor Technology College site, in Longton, once it is vacated by The Discovery Academy.
Its main catchment area would cover Normacot and Longton, but Muslim families from as far afield as Shelton and Tunstall have been inquiring about possible places.
Trust chairman Asif Mehmood said: "There has been overwhelming support from the community and from volunteers and local businesses.
"Everybody has done a lot of hard work. We were working on Christmas Eve and New Year's Day to get the bid done in time for the deadline. I'm hopeful it will be successful."
If the plans get through to the next stage, the team will be invited to an interview and could find out by the summer if they have won Government approval.
There are more than 70 free schools across England, with a further 102 due to open this autumn. They are funded by central Government and operate outside of local authority control.
Mr Mehmood said the Iqra Academy would teach the normal national curriculum.
He added: "There has been some confusion about this and so I would like to make it clear it will be open to all faiths.
"I hope it will be an excellent example of breaking down barriers and will give people from other faiths a real picture of Islam."
Father-of-four Aftab Hussain, from Normacot, is keen to send his family there.
The 40-year-old taxi driver, whose children are aged six, 11, 12 and 13, said: "I feel it's important for children to go to a school with a religious character. It helps them to become better citizens."
Comments
by Backdoored
Tuesday, January 22 2013, 12:16AM
“This thread... discussion, was skewed from the outset -When the Sentinel, in their wisdom, for reasons fairly obviousl, knowing the financial plight such local newspapers are in up and down the land, disengenuously made the HEADLINE ..
"Muslim faith school wins 'mass support":
By putting a 'quotation' mark AFTER the word 'support' -instead of after the word 'mass' -which had they done so, have conveyed a true, realistically and representitive picture of what actually went on in Longton that evening, re this meeting to put the proposals to 'the people'...
Headed - "Muslim faith school wins 'mass' support' -would have drawn attention, correctly, that the 'mass support' was in fact 'SUPPORT FROM ONE SECTION OF THE COMMUNITY' -whose interest was overly represented -AND not representative of the 'PEOPLE OF LONGTON' -as a whole.
An undemocratic piece of journalism -possibly affecting an undemocratic outcome. Subtle but not wise.”
by arthurheath1
Monday, January 21 2013, 7:56PM
“Oxfords finest will be pleased.”
by Backdoored
Monday, January 21 2013, 6:20PM
“Why do you ask?”
by murtad69
Monday, January 21 2013, 5:40PM
“it it iqra or igra?”
by Backdoored
Monday, January 21 2013, 11:06AM
“Yes, many have commented on that very point -'Mass support'... totally biased in order to 'stir and steer' -the hand into the pocket.
When it gets knocked back by Gove(ernment) -as it surely must, if only because the criteria is not being acknowledged by the proposers, I wonder what the Sentinel Headline will read?
"Mass support" -defeated by the masses" '? (the democratic voting masses)”
by arthurheath1
Monday, January 21 2013, 10:25AM
“The Staffordshire Sentinalibad strikes again with a completely misleading and Muslim biased story, yet again.”
by Backdoored
Sunday, January 20 2013, 11:20PM
“Well constructed, calm and collected comment and above all rationale, with facts underlining your opinions.
The idea for this Faith School is motivated soley from a 'seperatist mind-set' which has anti-integration principles. It's as simple as that. The question that poses is -'WHY DO THEY NOT WANT TO INTEGRATE?' Or, more accurately, -'WHY DON'T THE BEARDY MULLAHS NOT WANT THEM TO INTEGRATE'?
That's the nitty-gritty behind these proposals. In a word... POLITICS.”
by petePJ
Sunday, January 20 2013, 10:01PM
“Hard to hear cries of the need for faith based moral education from those whose origins are from societies reek of violence rape and iniquity. There's no evidence that faith schools produce better citizens or a better educational outcome apart from that generated by MOTIVATED parents
If you have a sectarian educational system you create a sectarian society. We should be removing obstacles preventing our children growing up together not creating more. My youngest child attends a primary state school that is 90% Muslim and a large number from homes where English is not the language of the home. School spends a lot of time and resourced to reach out and help both children and their parents to get the most out of our country. The governing body, mostly Muslim, is having to fight hard to prevent the beardy separatists (jobs for the boys?) taking over.”
by Backdoored
Friday, January 18 2013, 11:33PM
“by TheBeast
-"I'ts so interesting to see the amount of negativity this article has attracted. It goes to show the current level of intellect surrounding our future; i.e. our children". -unquote.
Tut tut... we've moved up to 'intellectual-level' have we? 'Never mind the logic -sniff the arrogance' -the latter being an essential componenet of all things 'religious' -whose adherents are blind to -of course; and as shown here by a beast.
So, let's take a close look at what the beast has to say to back up his claims re the 'intellectual bumf'. Here we go, this one first ...Quote:-
"Perhaps a change in tact and religious education will be a good thing for the scum that is held down by its own bacterial minds and twisted thoughts of religion". -Unquote.
Dearie dearie me -these intellectuals know how to 'get down and dirty' -I'll say that for them -Positively 'beastly'. Typically, anyone who doesn't believe in 'god' or worse -beieve in the 'god' and religion that they believe in -is scum and has a 'bacterial mind'.. oh, and twisted thoughts on religion' -quite a charge that one eh!
The words and opinions of a typial zealot.... Int that so Beastie Boy.
I'll split this comment, so as not to overtax your sense of intellectual capacity with too lang a page. See above for further adressing of your 'intellectual observations'.”
by TheBeast
Friday, January 18 2013, 9:58PM
“I'ts so interesting to see the amount of negativity this article has attracted. It goes to show the current level of intellect surrounding our future; i.e. our children.
Perhaps a change in tact and religious education will be a good thing for the scum that is held down by its own bacterial minds and twisted thoughts of religion.
Instead of teaching our communities to respect and tolerate each others beliefs, we have the older uneducated and narrow minded adults in our society who are too set in their ways to broaden their minds to anything other than expressing their hatred for something they clearly do not understand.
Having attended a Catholic school throughout my own childhood (no, I am not Catholic) I can truly appreciate the values and very basic teaching religion promotes. Perhaps the lack of religious influence in our society and in particular Stoke-on-Trent, is the reason children today have no respect for them selves or anybody else.
Just a thought... And on that note, GOD bless you all.”