Beckford Primary School

A PRIMARY school’s name will be changed after almost a century because of its links to the slave trade Beckford Primary School is the first building to be approved for a name change by councillors on a cross party panel set-up in response to Black Lives Matter protests.

To the shock of parents and some staff unaware of the story behind the name, the New Journal revealed last month how the West Hampstead school was named after 18th-century MP William Beckford, who used a reported 3,000 slaved on a sugar plantation in Jamaica.

The council panel’s statement said: “We have both concluded that a name change is warranted and that the school’s governing body will start consultation with parents and pupils to choose a new name in September.”

Beckford School’s governing body said it welcomed the decision and has set out a timeline for the process including a vote on the new name in November and a final decision in December.

The new name will come into effect by September 2021.

Headteacher Samuel Drake, in a letter to parents on Friday, added: “We would like to reassure our families that we acknowledge the potential costs for uniform. We will consider any additional costs when launching the new name.” He said he hoped the name change will “give pupils a further opportunity to learn about this history and also a more diverse range of locally significant figures”.

The decision to change the name was brought about by the Black Lives Matter protests that followed the death of George Floyd.

Hundreds have signed a petition calling for the school to be renamed after the late Beryl Gilroy, who ran the school between 1969 and 82 and was one of the first black headteachers in the country.

Other suggestions have included return to its original name, Broomsleigh Street School. The school’s statement added: “Together we are united in rejecting racism – in educating all generations and in moving forward together towards an equal society.”