The Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone has vowed to "increase Black teacher numbers to improve education outcomes for Black children". The Mayor's comments come in the light of new research being published to coincide with the 'London Schools and the Black Child', the third conference on Black education to be organised by the Mayor, with Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP Diane Abbott. The research was commissioned by the London Development Agency's Education Commission.

The Mayor said: 'This new report shows that African Caribbean boys start school at broadly the same level as other pupils, but they fall further and further behind in the course of their education. In 2003 roughly 70 per cent of African Caribbean pupils left school with less than five higher grade GCSEs or their equivalents. This represents the lowest level of achievement for any ethnic group of school children. More than twenty years after Rampton's landmark report, years of failure to educate Black children have been catastrophic for those young people and their communities. It will also be a disaster for London as a whole.'

In 2003, just 2.9 per cent of teachers in London schools were Black. The proportion of Black pupils, at 19.6 per cent, was more than six times the proportion of Black teachers. The proportion of Black, Asian and minority ethnic pupils in London schools was 43.5 per cent, but the proportion of Black, Asian and minority ethnic teachers was just 7.4 per cent.

The report, by Carol Hunte, highlights the pivotal role of black teachers in raising the attainment of black pupils. The Mayor added: 'To fully meet the needs of London's diverse communities the teaching profession and school governing bodies must reflect the communities they serve. This means that at least a third of London teachers and school governors should be of African, Caribbean or Asian heritage. This means establishing targets and timetables for their achievement across Greater London, and in each borough. At a borough level, the targets should reflect the different diverse communities of the individual borough.'

Diane Abbott said the report clearly showed the enthusiasm and commitment of Black children and their parents to achieving success at school, but more positive role models were needed in all aspects of their lives that were Black:

"Parents need to make sure their children are exposed to role models in their own family, church or community. Role models should also include Black people who have achieved academically, such as teachers. The Saturday school movement has been very successful in raising the expectations of children and mentors have an important role to play. Black teachers can sometimes relate better to Black children and be less inclined to view them as stereotypes. But the focus should now be on the recruitment of more Black teachers in the mainstream and the support of Black people already in the profession."

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