Police raid unregistered school over FGM fears
Police have arrested three people on suspicion of involvement in female genital mutilation at an unregistered school in Birmingham.
Officers raided the premises and were pictured taking away bags of evidence including computers on Tuesday.
Three people including two men aged 32 and 61 have been arrested after Ofsted inspectors found a locked room with a bed and medical equipment at the unregistered school.
One of those arrested is said to be from East London, sparking concerns of FGM being carried out further afield.
It is thought to be the first alleged case of FGM in Britain involving an unregistered school.
A source told The Sun newspaper: ‘FGM is a very rare crime. There’s a real fear this could get much bigger. The idea of it happening at an unregulated school is horrific.’
Police have arrested three people on suspicion of involvement in female genital mutilation at an unregistered school in Birmingham (stock image)
MailOnline has contacted police and Ofsted for further information.
An unregistered school is a setting that is operating as an independent school but is not registered with the Department for Education.
Anyone who wishes to run an independent or private school must register as a school with the Department for Education, the regulatory body for independent schools.
If a school is not operating legally, the person who runs it is guilty of an offence under section 96 of the Education and Skills Act 2008.
If convicted, they could be fined an unlimited amount and/or imprisoned for up to six months.
The exact number of women and girls in the UK who have undergone FGM is unknown. However, a 2015 study based on 2011 census data estimated that around 60,000 girls aged 0-14 were born in England and Wales to mothers who had undergone FGM.
Officers raided the premises and were pictured taking away bags of evidence including computers on Tuesday (stock image)
The study also found around 103,000 women aged 15-49 and around 24,000 women aged 50 and over who have migrated to England and Wales are living with the consequences of FGM.
It also found that around 10,000 girls aged under 15 who have migrated to England and Wales are likely to have undergone FGM
The study also reported that women who have undergone FGM do not only live in urban centres in England and Wales.
London has the highest prevalence rate in England and Wales, with an estimated 2.1% of women affected by FGM, the 2015 study found.
Outside the capital, the highest estimates were for Manchester, Slough, Bristol, Leicester and Birmingham.