A furious mum has criticised a school which cancelled lessons so its pupils could watch England thrash Iran at the World Cup in Qatar.
The woman, who requested not to be named, was angry when her daughter and son missed “crucial” lessons because of Gareth Southgate’s side’s opening group game.
Despite her ire, Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy defended its decision and claimed pupils would have skipped lessons had they gone ahead as planned, Stoke-on-Trent Live reported.
The 42-year-old mum said: “The school goes on about missing education all the time but then it’s pandering to the students that are threatening to be off school. It’s very wrong.
“I’m so infuriated by it. My youngest loves school, loves going to classes, they don’t get it from me. My eldest is in Year 10 studying towards their GCSEs. They know how important it is to get in every bit of education they can.
“The ones that want to go to class are being punished because there’s going to be half of the school that wants to watch it. Surely you should punish those children that do not turn up because of the game?
“If it was me, I would have watched the football as I hated school. The reason why I’m so annoyed is that my child isn’t into football.
“They’ve given them an option, they can watch the football or they don’t have to watch it, but they won’t be doing the lesson they’re meant to be doing.
“So basically they're missing out on the lesson they’re supposed to have at that time.”
Instead of having usual school lessons, the pupils watched Bukayo Saka put two past the Iranian goalkeeper as England started their campaign in sparkling form.
A spokesman for the school, named after England legend Sir Stanley, said: “Like many schools across the country, we have taken the decision to air England’s opening match, as part of this global sporting event.
“All other matches that England could qualify for will take place outside of academy hours, and so this is a one-off event, with minor adjustments to lesson timetables.
“Many of our students are avid football fans and are keen to show their support to the national team during this pinnacle moment.
“We also wanted to minimise any chance of absences that may have occurred had we chosen not to air the match.
“We informed all parents and carers of our decision last week, and lessons will be taking place as usual for students whose parents have expressed that preference.”
