'Everyone is welcome': Children reach out to gay teacher threatened over LGBT lessons

He faced chants calling for him to leave when 100 parents protested outside the school gates

Andrew Moffat, assistant head at Parkfield Community School in Birmingham, has been the focus of protests

A gay primary school teacher who has been targeted amid protests from parents over homosexuality teachings has been inundated with supportive cards from children saying “everyone is welcome”.

Andrew Moffat, assistant headteacher at Parkfield Community School in Birmingham, has received threatening emails and chants calling for him to leave over the past few weeks.

Around 100 parents protested outside the school gates on Thursday against his teachings on same-sex relationships. Adults with megaphones shouted “Get Mr Moffat out”.

The teacher believes his openness about his sexuality triggered the opprobrium.

“I am a teacher that just so happens to be gay. I should be able to teach safely and comfortably anywhere,” Mr Moffat told The Independent.

Mr Moffat – author of Birmingham City Council guide Challenging Homophobia in Primary Schools – said he was one of just three British teachers to be shortlisted in December for the annual Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize. His “No Outsiders” programme, which educates children to accept differences in society, was hailed as pioneering and he was praised for his commitment to inclusivity.

Just weeks later, a petition from hundreds of parents emerged opposing the programme which has been running for four years at the school, where the majority of children are Muslim.

Protesters have accused him of promoting personal beliefs. He said: “They started to become quite aggressive and personal towards me being gay. They became quite unpleasant.”

But children in the primary school have got behind the teacher. He said: “I was inundated with little posters and cards that children had made at home saying, ‘No outsiders. Everyone is welcome.”

“The first one I got I was quite shocked. I asked the eight-year-old girl why she had done it. And she said ‘because people are being unkind about you and I thought it would cheer you up’.”

It showed a person wearing a hijab, someone in a wheelchair, and it said “gay or lesbian” on it.

“Children know that in school we are very clear about our ethos that everyone is welcome. All children understand what it’s like to be left out,” Mr Moffat added.

In 2013, Mr Moffat resigned from another primary school – Chilwell Croft Academy in Birmingham – after a similar dispute with parents over teaching about challenging homophobia.

But the assistant head has no plans to leave despite receiving a threat saying “you won’t last long”. He said: “Threats are not good and they make me feel wary. But what is the alternative? I could go off sick for six months but I am not going to do that.”

Mr Moffat added: “We live in challenging times. There is a surge of hate crimes in the last few years in the UK. I think Brexit presents us with challenges and Donald Trump presents us with challenges.

“As educators we have to be very clear how we respond to a potentially divisive society. Schools can be the agents for change. We can be the ones that make society cohesive.”

A recent report from equality charity Stonewall revealed that that two in five LGBT pupils (40 per cent) are never taught anything about lesbian, gay, bi and trans people or the issues they face.

Sidonie Bertrand Shelton, head of education programmes at Stonewall. said: “Teaching about the diversity that exists in the world means that children from all families feel included and helps all children and young people understand that LGBT people are part of everyday life.”