This chapter will explore how equality policies operate to regulate public behaviour but in which racist behaviours are unacknowledged. The chapter will draw on two UK case studies, one exploring parents’ complaints about racism in schools and the other focussing on racism experienced by black and minority ethnic academics in higher education. The chapter will argue that whiteness and white identities are protected when complaints of racism are made. It will examine how recent policy developments such as the Equality Act 2010, in its attempts to protect individuals from discrimination, marginalises those from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. When complaints about racism are made, policies and attitudes within schools and universities fail to acknowledge the existence of such behaviour. As a result, a failure to acknowledge racist acts works to protect white identities and dismiss acts of racism.

Bullying in schools

In the UK there is a legal requirement for all state schools to have behaviour policies in place to encourage positive behaviour in schools. Section 89 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 specifies that maintained schools must have specific measures in place which encourage good behaviour and prevent all forms of bullying among pupils. All schools should have behaviour policies in place in which the prevention of bullying must be communicated to pupils, staff and parents.

Schools are also expected to abide by the Equality Act 2010 (see Chapter Six for a detailed discussion of the Equality Act and its workings). Part 6 of the Equality Act refers to bullying and what schools must do to address this. The Department for Education (DfE) states:

The DfE guidelines also suggest that under the Children Act 1989 bullying should be addressed as an issue of child protection when there is ‘reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm’. If this happens, it is the school’s responsibility to report such concerns to the local authority.