A Leicester junior school headmaster is facing calls for his resignation after he posted a picture on Facebook … reinforcing our advice to be careful about what you post on social networking sites and "what goes online, stays online".
Dr Tim Luckcock, 49, is head of Uplands Junior School. The picture shows him wearing a turban and is accompanied by the caption ‘Nearly gone native in Leicester.’
Leicester is a city where fewer than half of the population consider themselves white British. A staff member who wished to remain anonymous has been quoted as saying: "A pupil at the school noticed it on Facebook first and he told his mother who informed a member of staff. We are all shocked and pretty disgusted at it. Leicester is a multi-ethnic city and the school reflects this. We don’t know if this was Tim’s idea of a joke but it’s in very bad taste and has upset some pupils and their parents alike.’"
A spokesman for the Leicester Sikh Alliance said: "We applaud anybody who is seeking a different religious experience in the genuine quest for understanding and appreciation. But it is incumbent that such an exercise should be performed with respect and not in satire."
Peter Flack, the assistant secretary of NUT in Leicester told the BBC, said: "I think the photograph and the comments the head teacher has made are totally disgraceful. This is a multicultural city. We have multicultural schools serving all faith communities and basically what we have is a head teacher who is mocking that."
Dr Luckcock vigorously denies any wrong-doing. He said "The picture was taken at a school Divali celebration more than a year ago. Most members of staff were wearing similar headgear or Indian clothes. I put the picture on Facebook when I thought my privacy settings were at 'friends only'. The story is out of its true context. It’s wrong to infer I’m racist."
Teaching unions were hoping to meet with the City Council today to discuss the grievance.
A 2012 Ofsted report ranked the school as 'good' and described the governing body as 'very effective'.
