Immigration and our schools

The Office for National Statistics, estimates that the population of Britain will be increased by two million in the next decade as a consequence of immigration. This is a net figure - subtracting the number of people leaving the country from the numbers arriving. The overall number of arrivals will be far greater.

The consequences of such large-scale immigration are immediately felt by public services, especially in our schools. White British children are outnumbered in many London boroughs. In some parts of London, children from ethnic minority families account for 90 per cent of school places. By no means all are Eastern Europeans, though this group is the fastest-growing.

In one school, the Southfields Community College, there are 71 languages spoken among 1,300 pupils, including Arabic, Kurdish, Farsi, Swahili and Croatian. Children from immigrant families are often highly committed to education and work hard to overcome language barriers. Yet the sheer difficulty for teachers in dealing with a high proportion of pupils whose first language is not English is formidable.

Cultural and religious differences, while enriching in some respects, can also pose difficulties. The parents of British children who find themselves outnumbered by immigrants from very different backgrounds may feel their children's education is being compromised by the need to cater for minorities.

London has obviously benefited hugely from migration and it is impossible to imagine how the service sector in the capital could function without East Europeans. But when we consider the enormous economic advantages the capital gains from immigration, we must also consider its social costs.

Quite apart from the strain on housing, our schools will find it increasingly difficult to cope with even greater numbers of newcomers. The Government wildly miscalculated the likely numbers of people who would arrive here as a consequence of EU expansion - its original estimate was 13,000; meanwhile, it continues to lobby for EU membership for Turkey, which has very large potential for migration to this country.

Over the last decade the net numbers of legal migrants has amounted to some three million. The number of illegal immigrants is unknown.

Belatedly, the scale of the challenge posed by large scale immigration is being recognised in the Labour Party - not just by Gordon Brown but also those to the Left of the party, such as Jon Cruddas.

The fact is that the Government's immigration policies have not served us well. It is starting now to be more selective in those it allows to enter Britain but the impact of its previous policies is being borne by our schools and services. It is time for all political parties to face up to reality.