West Belfast Principals Link School Absences to Translink Disorder

West Belfast school leaders said translink disruption has left children missing from classrooms after some were forcibly evicted from their homes last night. Others stayed away today because parents and guardians were too afraid to send them to school.

West Belfast school statement

The leaders issued their statement to parents and carers after a terrible stabbing incident in north Belfast earlier this week. They said the thoughts and prayers of everyone in their school communities were with the victim and his family and friends.

They also said some children were spending today trying to find alternative accommodation after angry mobs forced them from their homes. Other pupils were absent because their parents and guardians feared sending them into school.

Homes targeted last night

The statement said some family homes were targeted last night in acts of wanton destruction. It said the attacks instilled fear in men, women and children who had committed no crimes, and said the targeted homes belonged to people who had done nothing wrong and were singled out because of the colour of their skin.

That leaves school leaders dealing with a problem that is both immediate and practical: children displaced overnight are trying to secure somewhere to stay, while others are already out of class because adults at home do not feel able to send them in.

Leadership response in West Belfast

The school leaders said all children have a right to be educated and to live free from violence and intimidation. They also said people in positions of leadership should help ensure all children are able to return to school as soon as possible.

For families affected, that means the pressure now sits on two fronts at once: finding accommodation for children forced out of their homes and restoring a school routine that parents felt unsafe allowing them to keep. The statement set that expectation without waiting for the disorder to ease on its own.