The Department has responded directly to The Black Curriculum’s campaign. The reply sets out in detail how the history curriculum already enables the teaching of Black history, as do other curriculums across other subject areas.

The substance of our reply to The Black Curriculum is based on the national curriculum’s history programmes of study, available at the link below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-history-programmes-of-study.

The national curriculum is a framework setting out the content of what the Department expects schools to cover in each subject. The curriculum does not set out how curriculum subjects, or topics within the subjects, should be taught. The Department believes teachers should be able to use their own knowledge and expertise to determine how they teach their pupils, and to make choices about what they teach.

As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, pupils should be taught about different societies, and how different groups have contributed to the development of Britain, and this can include the voices and experience of Black people. The flexibility within the history curriculum means that Black British history can already be included.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education received a request directly from The Black Curriculum organisation asking for a meeting and a response has been sent. At this stage, the Department’s work responding to the COVID-19 outbreak and other diary pressures make it difficult for the Secretary of State to arrange a meeting. However, the Secretary of State’s reply makes clear that officials have met with the organisation previously and are happy to meet with them again to discuss these matters.