Katharine Birbalsingh
Prank and abusive callers are targeting a London school after a TikTok video falsely claimed it makes students cook for teachers and gives out five hour detentions.
Office staff at Michaela Community School in Brent, which is run by “Britain’s strictest headteacher” Katharine Birbalsingh, have been receiving abusive messages with some callers shouting “f*** you” down the phone.
It comes after a TikTok video, which has been liked more than 4,000 times, said pupils at Michaela are not allowed to talk to their peers and are given a five hour detention if they are “a second late.”
Ms Birbalsingh tweeted an email she received from office staff at the school. It said: “In the last week we have been receiving a lot of phone calls from mostly anonymous numbers which are abusive/prank.
“They mostly are things like shouting ‘f*** you’ and things about the school being strict, but there have been some racist ones and generally awful hate. We’ve also had quite a few voicemails left.”
Referring to the TikTok video, the school staff member said it has a “horrifying number of likes and views, and is spouting all sorts of lies.” The email continued: “I don’t know whether this is the reason for all the hate calls.
“I’ve stopped picking up the phone when it’s anonymous, but they’re still coming through on normal numbers.”
Ms Birbalsingh said the email demonstrates the “lies detractors spread and the abuse we receive.”
She said in previous years a member of staff at the school had to leave because of the abuse. She added: “There are real people behind our phones. But they don’t care.”
Ms Birbalsingh refers to herself as “Britain’s strictest headteacher” and Michaela is known for its rules and discipline. Pupils and teachers eat together at lunchtime and children serve food to their classmates in “family lunches” designed to develop the “soft skills” and table manners.
Pupils are expected to move between classes silently, must track the teacher with their eyes in lessons and sit up straight.
The school says pupils feel safe and happy because their teachers are in charge and the rules are “clear and fair.”
