Tell the Government: Keep the Cap!

The NSS strongly disagrees with this proposal.

• The government says the 50% cap was introduced to "foster inclusivity" but admits: "the evidence suggests that this 50% faith admissions cap does not achieve inclusivity". It does not say how removing the cap entirely will therefore help - in fact, removing the cap can only make the situation worse. It will lead to more segregation between families of different faiths and beliefs, at a time when we desperately need more unity and community cohesion. As the 2021 Census revealed, England is more irreligious and religiously-diverse than ever before, and Christians are now a minority. Allowing state-funded schools to be more selective in such an environment is divisive and dangerous.
• The consultation documents says the proposals underpin the government's focus on "providing the best education for children, including for those from disadvantaged backgrounds and with special educational needs". But the government has ignored recent research which reveals faith schools are more socially selective, create barriers for looked-after and previously looked-after children, and admit fewer pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Removing the 50% cap will simply make faith schools even more exclusionary.
• The Catholic Church, the most ardent supporter of faith-based selection, has repeatedly put out misleading statements that the 50% cap is against Catholic 'canon law' as children will be turned away 'because they are Catholic' once the 50% cap is reached. This is untrue: the remaining 50% of children cannot be selected with reference to faith at all, so there is no way a child could lose a place because they are Catholic. State-funded Catholic schools in other countries, including Northern Ireland, do not usually use faith-based selection in admissions. Finally, education policy should be made according to the best interest of children or families - it should not be determined by religious 'laws'.
• The proposals are in direct conflict with the 2023 recommendation from the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child that the UK should prevent "the use of religion as a selection criterion for school admissions in England".
• It is inherently unfair, undemocratic and unequal for children to be prioritised at schools that all taxpayers pay for because of their family's religion or belief. It goes against fundamental British values of individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs. We should be working to ending religious selection at our schools - not increasing it.

The NSS believes the proposal will have a profoundly negative effect on equality, especially those with the following protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010:

• Religion or belief: Religious selection at schools directly discriminates against children and their families because of their religion or belief. The only reason it is permitted in law is because of specific exemptions in the Equality Act 2010 - exemptions which were added due to lobbying from the Catholic Church and other faith groups which control state-funded schools. Families with no religion, or belonging to minority religions which control few or no schools, will be especially affected.
• Disability: Recent research has revealed Catholic and Church of England schools admit fewer pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. Increasing selectivity at faith schools is likely to negatively impact on disabled pupils even further.
• Race: As the consultation admits, there are "strong correlations" between religion and ethnicity, and figures reveal that "a high degree of diversity is not apparent" in faith free schools subject to the 50% cap rule. The removal of the cap can only make this issue worse, leading to even more indirect racial discrimination due to the relationship between religion and race. It should be noted that there have been several cases where faith schools have been found guilty of racial discrimination due to this relationship.
• Sexual orientation and gender reassignment: All major religious institutions that control state schools in England consider same-sex relationships to be sinful, and do not recognise same-sex marriage. It is therefore unsurprising that the 2021 census found people who identified as Christian, Hindu, Muslim or Sikh were less likely to be LGB+ than the overall population of England, and more likely to be nonreligious. This means lesbian, gay and bisexual parents and guardians will be negatively affected by removing the cap, because they are less likely to meet faith schools' religious criteria.

  It should also be noted that faith schools, particularly Catholic schools, have been found to teach that same-sex relationships are sinful. Lifting the cap will lead to the establishment of more schools teaching these ideas, which are discriminatory against LGB+ pupils and families.

  The relationship between religion and gender reassignment is less clear. However, most major religions consider it sinful to for a person to adopt the clothes and other attributes associated with the opposite sex. It is therefore reasonable to assume that transgender parents and guardians will be less likely to belong to a mainstream religion, and therefore less able to send their child to a faith school that prioritises children who are recognised as formally belonging to the religion of the school.

• Sex and Pregnancy and maternity: The government has made it clear it wants to lift the cap to allow for more Catholic schools to open. Catholic schools have been found to teach that contraception and abortion are morally wrong and that women are "receiver-responders" in sexual relationships. These ideas are particularly discriminatory against women, and may also negatively impact women who are pregnant outside of Catholic marriage.

The NSS strongly disagrees that special academies should be permitted to have a religious designation.

• Special academies serve the most vulnerable and impressionable children in our society. Giving these schools more freedom to proselytise to children and indoctrinate them into a religion raises serious ethical concerns. Special academies should always be centred on the rights, welfare and education of children. But allowing faith schools to have a religious designation prioritises the demands of religious institutions, rather than the best interests of the children.
• Special academies with a faith designation will not only be permitted to apply religious testing in their staffing - their religious governing bodies may require it. These academies will therefore be forced to limit their senior staff to members of their religion, which will significantly decrease possible candidates in a field that is already highly specialised. This will not only reduce opportunities for teachers in this field; it will be detrimental to the school and its pupils if they are unable to hire or promote the most effective staff due to the restriction on faith.
• The consultation says the policy "would encourage high quality faith school providers with a track record of high performance" to establish new special academies and free schools. But the Catholic Church, the Church of England and many other religious institutions have an appalling record on safeguarding, as highlighted by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. Some of the most horrific incidents of child sexual abuse have taken place in independent Catholic schools and Catholic children's care homes. It is irresponsible to let institutions with such an atrocious track record on safeguarding run schools for the most vulnerable children in society.
• 'Religious trauma syndrome' is an increasingly recognised psychological condition, affecting many of those who have been indoctrinated into religion as children. Children requiring special education are likely to be more vulnerable to religious trauma syndrome, especially if they have underlying emotional problems and cognitive difficulties including critical thinking.
• The concept of schools with a religious designation is outdated, divisive, exclusionary and inappropriate for our diverse society. We should be working towards a state school system without faith schools, rather than increasing the number and variety of faith schools.

The NSS thinks it will make it harder to local authorities to find appropriate places for children and young people who require special education.

Even in mainstream education, many parents are strongly opposed to a faith-based education for their children, and actively avoid sending their children to a faith school.

We think parents of children requiring a special school will be even more wary of a faith-based education, due to the additional vulnerabilities their children have and the ethics of giving them an education which seeks to inculcate them into a particular religion.

As the consultation acknowledges, special schools are in short supply. But allowing faith institutions to run academies with a religious character in order to supplement the numbers is not the solution, because many parents will not want to send their children there. No parent should be forced to send their child to a faith school because it is the only choice available in their area. But this is likely to be the case if more special schools are allowed to run as faith schools.

The NSS thinks it will reduce choices for parents.

Even in mainstream education, many parents are strongly opposed to a faith-based education for their children, and actively avoid sending their children to a faith school.

We think parents of children requiring a special school will be even more wary of a faith-based education, due to the additional vulnerabilities their children have and the ethics of giving them an education which seeks to inculcate them into a particular religion.

As the consultation acknowledges, special schools are in short supply. But allowing faith institutions to run academies with a religious character in order to supplement the numbers is not the solution, because many parents will not want to send their children there. No parent should be forced to send their child to a faith school because it is the only choice available in their area. But this is likely to be the case if more special schools are allowed to run as faith schools.

The NSS thinks the proposal is ill-conceived and should be abandoned.

Religious institutions can already run special schools with a religious ethos. There is no justification for additionally allowing them to run special schools with a religious character, which will have more freedom to proselytise via collective worship and religious education, and to discriminate against staff based on religion. These 'freedoms' are not in the best interest of children - they merely serve the demands of religious institutions.

The NSS believes the proposal will have a profoundly negative effect on equality, especially those with the following protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010:

• Religion or belief: While the proposals will not allow for special academies with a religious character to directly discriminate against pupils based on religion in admissions, they will still be indirectly discriminatory against children and families who do not share their faith. A child who has not been raised in the Christian religion is likely to feel confused an alienated in a Christian school - especially if they have special educational needs. Additionally, many parents actively want to avoid a faith-based education. They will be seriously disadvantaged if the only special school in their local area is faith-based.
• Disability: There are likely to be considerably more disabled children within special education than in mainstream education. If special schools are permitted to open as faith schools, there is a high chance there will be an oversupply of faith-based special schools, meaning that disabled children and others with special educational needs are more likely to be forced to attend a faith school against their or their parents' wishes than a child in mainstream education. In other words, disabled children are more likely to see their equality and freedom of religion or belief limited by school provision.
• Race: As the consultation admits, there are "strong correlations" between religion and ethnicity. Therefore, families who belong to a minority ethnicity are more likely to belong to a minority religion, which is less likely to run special schools. This therefore puts children from minority ethnic backgrounds at a disadvantage.
• Sexual orientation and gender reassignment: All major religious institutions that control state schools in England consider same-sex relationships to be sinful, and do not recognise same-sex marriage. Faith schools, particularly Catholic schools, have been found to teach that same-sex relationships are sinful. There are serious concerns that these teachings could also be present in special schools with a religious character, particularly considering children at these schools are already vulnerable and more likely to have emotional problems. Telling LGB+ children, or children with LGB+ parents or guardians, that same-sex relationships are sinful will add to their distress.

  Similarly, most major religions also consider it sinful to for a person to adopt the clothes and other attributes associated with the opposite sex. This too is likely to have a negative impact on children exploring their gender identity, or who have transgender parents or guardians.

  It should be noted that transgender people have higher rates of autism and other neurodevelopmental and psychiatric diagnoses. Children needing special education may therefore be more likely to identify as transgender.

• Sex and Pregnancy and maternity: Many state-funded faith schools, particularly Catholic schools, have been found to teach that contraception and abortion are morally wrong and that women are "receiver-responders" in sexual relationships. These ideas are particularly discriminatory against women, and may also negatively impact women who are pregnant outside of marriage.