A parent has labelled his son’s primary school “disrespectful” after it flew the Lithuanian flag above the Union flag.

Ipswich Star: Flags flying outside The Oaks Community Primary School in Ipswich.Flags flying outside The Oaks Community Primary School in Ipswich. (Image: Archant)

The headteacher of The Oaks Community Primary School in Ipswich said the flag was displayed in aid of National Lithuanian Day.

Matthew Lister, who has a nine-year-old son who attends the school, said: “It’s not the flag that is the issue, it’s because it is flying above the Union flag – it’s very disrespectful.”

He said it was against flag regulation in the United Kingdom to fly any nation’s flag higher than the Union flag.

“I’m angry to say the least, I could have quite happily cut the flag down myself,” Mr Lister added.

Headteacher Jeremy Pentreath said the school had made a “honest mistake” and that the flag was raised to celebrate the day, which falls in half term on February 16.

He said: “It was all done in the very best interest of the children and we certainly didn’t want to cause any offense to anybody.

“We thought it would be a good way to celebrate diversity and perhaps breaking down some of the terrible things that go on in the world that cause wars which we are seeing in places like the Ukraine at the moment.”

Mr Pentreath said the school had now swapped the flags around so that the Union flag was flying above the Lithuanian flag.