BF2S Forums Teachers told not to use red ink because it upsets students

The move was condemned as "political correctness gone wild" and ministers were forced to deny the Government issues guidelines on the colour of teachers' pens.

Tory MP Bob Blackman took his concerns to parliament after a teacher in his Harrow East constituency informed him the secondary school had banned staff from using red ink.

He told MailOnline: "A teacher contacted me and said I cannot believe I have been instructed by my head to mark children’s homework in particular colours and not to use certain colours.

"It is all about not wanting to discourage youngsters if their work is marked wrong.

"It sounds to me like some petty edict which is nonsense. It is absolutely political correctness gone wild.

He added: "My take on all this is to say children need to understand the difference between what’s right and what’s wrong."

Mr Blackman tabled a parliamentary question, asking whether the Government makes rules which "prohibit or discourage the use of red ink for the purposes of marking or commenting on students’ schoolwork".

Education minister Elizabeth Truss was forced to distance the Government from the policy.

She said: "No, the Department does not issue guidelines which prohibit or discourage the use of red ink for marking students schoolwork."

It is thought the policy was introduced by the head teacher instead.

Mr Blackman declined to name the school responsible but said he would be taking up the issue with the head teacher.

The move comes just months after Michael Gove set out plans for a new back-to-basics National Curriculum, which places emphasis on traditional areas of teaching such as spelling, grammar and alegbra.