School shuts X account over 'racism' on platform

A Welsh secondary school has said it is closing its account on X - formerly known as Twitter - over concerns about racism on the social media platform.

The head teacher of Ysgol Glantaf Gymraeg Glantaf in Cardiff said a decision was made by governors to "move away from the platform".

Matthew HT Evans also called for other organisations such as the Welsh government and school inspectors Estyn to consider long they continue to use the platform.

X, which was bought for $44bn (£38.1bn) in 2022 by the billionaire Elon Musk, has been contacted for a response.

Speaking to BBC Cymru Fyw, Mr Evans said he was "shocked" over messages appearing on the platform during the summer, when rioting broke out in several areas of England and Northern Ireland following the murder of three girls in Southport.

"During the hate riots in the summer, we were able to see young people and children on the streets who were drawn into the lies and racism that was going on, which was disturbing," he said.

"You were seeing comments that made you feel uncomfortable about the clear racism that was going on that platform," he said.

During the August riots, Mr Musk posted on X, formerly Twitter, predicting civil war in the UK and repeatedly attacking Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

At the time, ministers said his comments were "totally unjustifiable" and "pretty deplorable".

Last month, Starmer said he did not want to be misunderstood after the BBC reported that the tech tycoon had not been invited to the UK’s International Investment Summit due to his social media posts during last month’s riots, and Tesla, which is also run by Mr Musk, would be welcome to invest.

The head of Glantaf said that since the school returned in September, concerns had been reflected in conversations with staff and with parents who felt uncomfortable.

However, he said the school has also received "very vehement" messages about freedom of speech and freedom of information.

"As far as we were concerned, it was not a matter of freedom of speech. Messages of hate and racism are another matter," he added.

The school was Cardiff's first Welsh-medium secondary school when it opened in 1978, and according to its latest Estyn report, has more than 1,300 pupils.

It has decided that it will use now start using the social platform Instagram, although that will remain under scrutiny.

"We will review it, as I'm not sure if Instagram is the right platform and ultimately we may have to consider that social platforms are not suitable for schools to communicate on," said Mr Evans.

He also wondered if other organisations using X will follow suit.

"My feeling is you've got a large number of organisations that are on this platform – Estyn, Welsh government, county councils – and I think there's a question for them all to how long they're going to continue on this platform?" he said.

The Welsh government said it keeps the accounts it uses "under ongoing review."

"We recognise the concerns raised about the management of X in recent months, but believe it is important to continue to engage with as many people as possible and provide clear, trusted information.”

The Welsh Local Government Association, which represents councils, declined to comment.

Estyn said it continued to review its social media channels and "monitor our engagement on X” as part of that.