Ailin Vilches Arguello, The Algemeiner A sweeping crackdown on antisemitism is expected across England’s schools and colleges after a government-commissioned review revealed that three in five Jewish students have experienced antisemitic hatred, laying bare the scale of the problem amid growing hostility toward Jews and Israelis nationwide. The British government on Wednesday accepted all 27 recommendations from a months-long independent review led by Sir David Bell, a former chief inspector of Ofsted, England’s school inspectorate — which found that antisemitic incidents were often left unreported or met with little to no intervention from students and teachers, exposing serious shortcomings in schools’ responses and enforcement. “Our schools and colleges play a vital role in educating the next generation of Britons. They are at the center of our efforts to tackle antisemitism amongst the young. So, I call upon everyone with an interest in our nation’s future to redouble their efforts to ensure that our education system is safe for everyone, including our fellow Jewish citizens of whatever age,” Bell said in a statement. Among the review’s 27 recommendations are measures requiring schools and colleges to recognize antisemitism as a distinct form of harm and take targeted action against it, equip teachers with dedicated resources and specialized training, and establish a national hotline to provide school leaders with prompt guidance on addressing anti-Jewish hatred. Schools and higher education institutions will also be required to expand education on contemporary antisemitism, introduce media literacy lessons to help students recognize and challenge antisemitism and conspiracy theories online, ensure Religious Education classes provide a comprehensive understanding of modern Jewish life, and create more opportunities for students to interact with members of the country’s Jewish community. Other recommendations include encouraging schools to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA)’s working definition of antisemitism and strengthening Holocaust education to ensure that antisemitism is recognized as a central theme of the genocide. However, less than a day after the review’s publication, the National Education Union (NEU), the country’s largest education union, has already rejected several recommendations, arguing that adopting the IHRA working definition of antisemitism in schools would be the “wrong approach.” “Recommending the IHRA definition risks tightening the chilling grip already stifling classroom discussion of the Gaza genocide,” NEU’s General Secretary Daniel Kebede said in a statement. “Schools need practical support to confront antisemitism, not a contested framework that risks shutting down legitimate discussion,” he continued. “This report will not tackle antisemitism. It wrongly calls into question the professionalism of teachers.” The IHRA definition, which has been widely adopted around the world, includes Holocaust denial and modern forms targeting Israel, such as demonizing the Jewish state and denying its right to exist. Critics argue the definition could restrict freedom of expression by conflating legitimate criticism of Israel with antisemitism. Even though the newly released report acknowledges that some Jewish staff feel “excluded or insufficiently supported” by education unions over their messaging and activities related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it stops short of labeling the unions “inherently antisemitic,” instead urging them to “strengthen efforts” to tackle anti-Jewish hatred.