The government has accepted all 27 recommendations from a review of antisemitism in schools and colleges in England led by Sir David Bell, announcing new training, stronger safeguarding guidance and improved incident reporting. The measures are commitments to be implemented, not changes already completed across schools.
Education Secretary Lucy Powell said the government would establish an implementation group and commission Sir David Bell, who led the review, to assess progress after one year. The group is intended to help deliver the recommendations and monitor their implementation across the education sector.
What the government says will change
The announced package includes dedicated antisemitism training for education leaders and designated safeguarding staff. The government also plans to strengthen guidance on safeguarding, teachers’ standards and political impartiality, and to improve the reporting and monitoring of antisemitic incidents.
Schools and colleges are to receive additional resources and advice, including support for complex cases. The government says it will help education professionals understand contemporary antisemitism and Jewish life, and support balanced discussion of sensitive geopolitical issues. It will encourage institutions to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism; adoption is encouraged, not compulsory.
The government’s response says criticism of the policies or actions of the Government of Israel is not, by itself, antisemitic. It also says educators should recognise and challenge antisemitic tropes, conspiracy theories, collective blame of Jewish people and hostility towards Jews. Schools remain subject to political-impartiality duties, including not promoting partisan political views and presenting a balanced range of viewpoints when political issues are discussed.
Findings and limits
Bell’s review describes antisemitism as a significant and growing challenge in education and says Jewish pupils, students and staff experience abuse, harassment and discrimination. It reports that three in five Jewish pupils aged 16 to 19 had experienced or witnessed antisemitism. That figure is a finding attributed to the review, not a measure of every pupil’s experience or an independently verified count of incidents.
The review also draws on evidence from people working and studying in education, and on a survey commissioned for the review. The published government page describes the evidence annex as an analysis of responses to a call for evidence and a survey of school sixth-form and college students. Its findings inform the recommendations, but should not be treated as a census of all schools or as proof that every setting has the same conditions.
The policy applies to England. The government frames antisemitism as an issue for the whole education system, rather than solely for schools serving Jewish communities. The changes are meant to equip staff to identify and respond to incidents while enabling discussion of difficult topics without tolerating harassment or discrimination.
The distinction between an accepted recommendation and an implemented policy matters. The government has accepted the proposals and set up an implementation group, but training, guidance changes, reporting arrangements and enhanced case support are actions to be taken forward. Bell’s planned one-year review is intended to assess progress and identify where more action may be needed.
In a written statement to Parliament, Powell said lasting change would require sustained focus, accountability and partnership across the education sector. The next test will be how the commitments are translated into practical guidance and support for schools and colleges, and what Bell’s one-year review of progress finds.
