Birmingham Metropolitan College scraps ban on religious veils
A college has scrapped a ban on students wearing religious veils amid criticism from human rights groups.
Published
Birmingham Metropolitan College, which has sites in Stourbridge, Brierley Hill and Great Barr as well as Birmingham, introduced the policy 'for security reasons'.
The policy had enforced a ban on all face coveringsso students could be 'easily identifiable'.
It had been criticised by some Muslim girls for including the Niqab – a traditional veil.
The college has bowed to pressure despite support from Prime Minister David Cameron's office.
The college confirmed staff had 'modified' the policy to allow individuals to wear specific items of clothing 'to reflect their cultural values'.
