Imams invited to schools in fight against extremism

Schools will be told next week that they are on the front line when it comes to steering pupils away from violent extremism.

Ministers back the idea of British-born imams being invited into classrooms to help give citizenship lessons. The idea is for them to deliver lessons to Muslim pupils placing Islam and the Koran in the context of life in a multi-cultural society.

The Schools secretary Ed Balls warned yesterday that some school-aged pupils were already in danger of being drawn "into a world of criminal activity inspired by violent extremists". "Education can be a powerful weapon against this," he said in an article in the Times Educational Supplement.

The idea of inviting imams into schools was first raised by Britain's biggest teachers' union, the National Union of Teachers, at its annual conference.

It argued that, to avoid segregation, representatives of all faith groups should be invited into all schools to deliver religious instruction. The union provoked fierce controversy, particularly from headteachers who believed the approach could be used by extreme groups to infiltrate schools.

However, the Government believes it can avoid this if British-born imams are invited to deliver talks in the context of a classroom discussion rather than religious instruction. It believes they could then tackle faith issues in the context of discussing the rights of neighbours, the sacredness of life and the importance of equal opportunities.

A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "In selecting individuals to work with, schools will only work with those who uphold our shared values of tolerance, respect and equality and who reject and condemn violent extremism."

Its plans will be published jointly with the Home Office.