A book based on the Three Little Pigs has been banned from a school award for causing offence to builders

A children鈥檚 book failed to make the shortlist of an annual schools award because the judges said it was offensive to builders.

The Three Little Cowboy Builders, a re-telling of the Three Little Pigs, supposedly 鈥渟tereotypes trades people鈥�. The book鈥檚 publishing company, Shoo-fly, were given feedback from the judges of the Bett Award that criticised the portrayal of builders as pigs whose work can easily be blown down.

Anne Curtis, creative director of Shoo-fly publishing, told 黑洞社区.co.uk that the moral of the book is to learn a trade rather than stereotyping people.

She said: 鈥淭he three pig鈥檚 mother tells them to go to school and get qualifications but they say they don鈥檛 need them. The wolf is a housing inspector and when he comes and asks to see the architects鈥� plans of their three houses, and they can鈥檛 produce them, he huffs and puffs and blows their houses down.鈥�

The wolf is a housing inspector and when he comes and asks to see the architects鈥� plans of their three houses, and they can鈥檛 produce them, he huffs and puffs

Ann Curtis

鈥淲e鈥檙e really encouraging people to get qualifications and trades. I think we鈥檙e promoting good building practice.鈥�

Becta, the government technology agency that organises the awards, said: 鈥淭he feedback makes clear that the issues highlighted were a small selection from a much broader range of comments which in the round make clear why the product did not win.鈥�

According to Shoo-fly Becta also said that the use of pigs as characters in the story meant they 鈥渃ould not recommend it to the Muslim community鈥�.

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