Muslim girl loses niqab case

A Muslim schoolgirl has lost her High Court challenge to a ban on wearing the niqab full-face veil.

Lawyers for the 12-year-old girl, referred to as X, and her father, had argued that the ban imposed last September by her Buckinghamshire school - which cannot be named for legal reasons - was "irrational".

They said it went against her "legitimate expectation" that she would be allowed to wear the veil and also breached her right to freedom of "thought, conscience and religion" under Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The girl began wearing the niqab, which covers all of the face except the eyes, on reaching puberty. At the time, her school said it was not acceptable because teachers believed it would make communication and learning difficult.

Mr Justice Silber rejected the girl's plea for a judicial review. At a recent hearing the judge was told the girl's three elder sisters all attended the same school - two of them under the present headteacher - and all wore the niqab.

X is believed to be the only pupil - currently receiving tuition at home - demanding the right to wear it when being taught by male teachers or when in the presence of other male staff.

About 120 of the school's 1,300-plus pupils are Muslims, and up to 60 of them wear the hijab headscarf.

Following the judgment, the girl's lawyers said that she and her family are "bitterly disappointed" and are considering an appeal.

The school has won the backing of The Muslim Educational Centre of Oxford, which stresses that not all Muslims agree with the wearing of the niqab.

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