On Tuesday 4th November 2025, the BERA Presidential Seminar Series held an online event focusing on Northern Ireland. During a period of significant educational transformation, and in the context of racist violence in Northern Ireland over successive summers, the seminar brought together practitioners, policymakers and researchers to explore how principles of anti-racism could be foregrounded in educational policy, pedagogy and practice.

Northern Ireland had long had a troubled relationship with racism. During the years of conflict, racism was often ignored or denied as a problem, and race equality legislation was first introduced only in 1997. In the years following the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, as the proportion of NI residents from minority ethnic backgrounds increased, racist incidents reached alarming levels. In 2024/5, crimes with a racist motivation significantly outnumbered other forms of hate crime, and racist violence in Belfast in 2024 and Ballymena in 2025 made international news.

In education, the response to increased ethnic diversity in general, and racism specifically, had been variable. While schools were subject to the Race Relations Order, they were exempt from the Section 75 duties of the Northern Ireland Act to promote “equality of opportunity” and “good relations” between racial groups. A divided education system, stratified along religious and socio-economic lines, had been implicated in inequalities of experience and access for minority ethnic pupils, though examples of excellent practice were widespread across schools. The curriculum offered opportunities to explore cultural diversity but often lacked a critical approach to racism and relied on individual teachers’ willingness to develop culturally responsive pedagogies and resources.

However, NI education was in a period of transition, which provided scope to address systemic inequalities and embed anti-racist practice. In 2024, the Education Minister announced a review of curriculum design and delivery, with a view to developing a new, knowledge-rich curriculum. The review report by Lucy Crehan, published in June 2025, argued that this new curriculum framework should “emphasise inclusivity and diversity,” retaining the flexibility for teachers to select resources and contexts that promote representation. This recommendation was taken forward by a Curriculum Taskforce appointed to develop a new curriculum for implementation from 2026/2027. As this Taskforce promised to prioritise equity and ambition, commentators highlighted the need to centre the voices, knowledge and experience of minority groups in knowledge-rich curriculum design.

At this critical juncture, the BERA Presidential Seminar provided a space to reflect on the role of education in challenging racial inequalities within the education system and in wider Northern Ireland society. The seminar began with a focus on the curriculum, exploring the recommendations from the curriculum review, the practice and potential of intercultural education, and grass-roots developments to redress the marginalisation of diverse histories and experiences in NI education. It then considered what was required to address racial inequality and racism within the education system and settings, drawing insights from policy, research and practice. The event supported educators and others as they worked to meet the challenge of anti-racism in their practice, beginning conversations that continued over the following months.

Programme

12:00pm                Welcome and introduction; Marlon Moncrieffe, British Educational Research
                                  Association

12:15pm                Anti-Racist Education in Northern Ireland: Urgency and Opportunity;
                                 Rebecca Loader, Queen’s University Belfast

12:30pm                Panel Session 1: Equality and Diversity in the Curriculum; Lucy Crehan, NI
                                 Curriculum Review ; Barbara Skinner, Ulster University; Naomi Green, North                                    West Migrants Forum

13:10pm                Panel Session 2: Embedding Anti-Racism in Policy and Practice; Chris
                                  Jenkins, Equality Commission NI; Erika Jiménez, Queen’s University Belfast;
                                  Charlotte Carson, National Education Union NI; Aisling O’Boyle, Queen’s
                                  University Belfast; Israel Eguaogie, Belfast City of Sanctuary and Diverse                                            Youth NI

13:50pm                Closing Remarks; Marlon Moncrieffe; Rebecca Loader

14:00pm                Close of Event