Statistics from 2011 Census show more Muslim children than Christian growing up in Birmingham. Of 278,623 youngsters, 97,099 were registered as Muslim compared with 93,828 as Christian. A similar trend has emerged in the cities of Bradford and Leicester. Experts said more must be done to ensure that society does not become polarised along religious lines.
In England’s
second city of Birmingham, of 278,623 youngsters, 97,099 were
registered as Muslim compared with 93,828 as Christian. The rest were of
other faiths such as Hindu or Jewish, or none.
A
similar trend has emerged in the cities of Bradford and Leicester, the
towns of Luton, in Bedfordshire, and Slough in Berkshire, as well as the
London boroughs Newham, Redbridge and Tower Hamlets, where nearly
two-thirds of children are Islamic.
The figures
show that Christianity is still the dominant religion in every local
authority area in England and Wales, even in the most culturally diverse
towns and cities.
Of
the 45.5million participants, 27.9million subscribed to Christianity,
compared with 1.8million Muslims, the second largest grouping.
However,
among dependent children – defined as those aged up to 15, or between
16 and 18 and in education and still living at home – the gap is
narrower.
Of
12.1million youngsters, 6.1million were Christian and 1million were
Muslim. And in some places, the balance has now tipped towards Islam.
In
Bradford, 52,135 children are Muslims (45 per cent) next to 47,144
Christians; in Leicester the figures are 22,693 and 18,190 respectively.
The widest gap is in Tower Hamlets where 62 per cent of children are Islamic, outnumbering Christians by 34,597 to 8,995.
Sughra
Ahmed, president of the Islamic Society of Britain, said: ‘Britain’s
Muslims make up just 5 per cent of the population but have a younger
demographic profile than other faiths, as these figures show. It matters
to us all that this next generation of young British Muslims develops a
clear and confident sense of their British identity alongside their
Muslim faith. It’s important that schools teach all of our children the
values of respect and tolerance.
About 30% of Marseille’s population are Muslim, around 25% of Rotterdam’s and 24% of Amsterdam’s (see table)
‘Britain
is doing better at this than many of our neighbours. A major new study
this week showed that most people think the children of immigrants are
integrating well.
‘This
is one of the most tolerant countries in the world. It will continue to
be so, provided we all understand how that depends on respect for the
beliefs of others too.’
According to the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey, in 2003, 48 per cent of Britons worried that an increase in the Muslim population would weaken Britain’s national identity. By 2013, that had risen to 62 per cent.
Muslim underperformance at higher education is at least partly down to gender. In the population as a whole, young women are more likely to go to university than young men. But among British Muslims, the pattern is reversed, with three Muslim boys going on to higher education for every two women. Equalising those numbers would send another 50,000 Muslim women university.
Resouce:
1. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/11409181/British-Muslims-integration-and-segregation-are-about-economics-not-values.html
2. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2755654/The-changing-face-Britain-A-child-Birmingham-likely-Muslim-Christian.html
3. http://www.snouts-in-the-trough.com/archives/7972
