A London headteacher has blasted lesson material shown to schoolchildren that branded Reform UK as being close to fascism, calling it "political brainwashing".
Teaching slides used at Orion Education academies in London and Kent placed Reform UK’s logo at the "fascism" end of the political spectrum just short of the BNP and the Nazi flag.
The material also claimed that some Reform UK supporters hold “extremist views”, while describing Labour and the Conservatives as "mainstream".
Serge Cefai, Executive Headteacher of St Thomas the Apostle School, told GB News he was appalled by what he called a "blatant breach of teaching standards".
Serge Cefai was appalled by the 'breach of standards'
|GB NEWS
"Well, this is a real problem for me," he said. "As a teacher, I start worrying when opinion is taught as fact. This shouldn’t be happening."
He called the presentation a "breach of teaching guidelines" and said it should be investigated by Ofsted.
"This is wrong. Teachers should teach facts, not opinion. If they start teaching opinion, they’ll get into real trouble," he warned.
Mr Cefai said he believed the material amounted to a form of "grooming".
He said: "I don’t like to use the word grooming, but that’s what it feels like. It’s not education, it’s indoctrination.
"Keep your personal life and your politics out of schools. We’re here to educate, not to lead children down one path."
Teaching slides used at Orion Education academies placed Reform UK’s logo at the 'fascism' end of the political spectrum
| GETTYThe headteacher also compared the materials to propaganda tactics used in extremist education systems overseas.
"To me, these behaviours are very similar to the way Hamas are educating their children against Jewish people,” he said.
He urged schools to "treat children properly" by providing balanced information and allowing them to make up their own minds.
"I’m sick of these little things creeping into classrooms. There’s no place for it in education," he said.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Following an expose by the Mail on Sunday, Orion Education chief executive Simon Garill said he had begun an investigation into the lessons.
Mr Garill added that he would carry out a “fair and thorough process” after the half-term break.
An Orion spokeswoman added: "We are in receipt of the letter from Mr Tice and are currently investigating the concerns he has raised."