We want to see laws requiring schools to hold acts of worship abolished.
The laws are archaic, unnecessary and breach children's freedom of religion or belief.
The United Kingdom is the only Western democracy which legally imposes worship in publicly funded schools.
The law in England and Wales provides that children at all maintained schools "shall on each school day take part in an act of collective worship". Northern Ireland and Scotland have similar laws.
Even in schools with no religious designation, the worship must be "wholly or mainly of a Christian character".
School assemblies are an important feature of school life. They foster a sense of community in schools and promote the moral and social development of pupils. But acts of worship are neither necessary nor desirable to achieve these educational goals.
Polling has found 70% of senior teachers "disagree" or "strongly disagree" with the law mandating worship, and 66% of teachers say their school does not even hold collective worship.
The majority of the public (52%) say school assemblies should be about moral issues, whereas just 26% agree that they should feature religious worship.
Many schools ignore the law, but where it is enforced it causes division and discrimination, as well as opening the door to evangelism and proselytising.
Parents have the right to withdraw children from collective worship, but many this is an unreasonable imposition on both themselves and their children. Parents should never have to withdraw their children from any part of the school day to ensure their rights to raise their child according to their own religious or philosophical convictions are respected.
Collective worship laws are outdated relics of a society unrecognisable from the diverse and pluralistic Britain of today, where citizens hold a wide variety of religious beliefs, and increasingly, no religious beliefs. The abolition of collective worship is long overdue.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Ask them to help end compulsory worship in schools
2. Share your story
Tell us why you support this campaign, and how you are personally affected by the issue. You can also let us know if you would like assistance with a particular issue.
3. Join us
Become a member of the National Secular Society today! Together, we can separate religion and state for greater freedom and fairness.
Latest updates
CoE trust to introduce alternative to worship after legal challenge
Posted: Wed, 20 Nov 2019 15:38
A Church of England multi-academy trust has said it will provide an inclusive alternative assembly for pupils withdrawn from Christian collective worship after two parents launched a legal challenge.
The Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST) has reached a settlement with Lee and Lizanne Harris (pictured) after they argued that assemblies at Burford Primary School breached their human rights.
During the assemblies children were encouraged to participate in prayer and biblical stories such as the crucifixion were acted out. Burford primary is not a faith school, despite the fact it is part of a C of E trust.
The Harris family, who had children at the school, said Christianity was taught as truth and there was no meaningful alternative for withdrawn pupils.
The ODST agreed to provide alternative inclusive secular assemblies, which will end when the Harrises' children leave the school.
State schools in England and Wales are legally obliged to hold acts of collective worship daily – though in practice this is upheld very inconsistently. Many schools ignore the law or hold inclusive assemblies where there is a moment of silence but worship is not directed, with the tacit agreement of the government and inspectors.
The National Secular Society campaigns to end the collective worship law; advocates inclusive, secular assemblies for all; and argues that worship should not form part of the official school day.
NSS head of education Alastair Lichten said the settlement was "a welcome step" which raised "significant questions over the sustainability of the collective worship law".
"The concessions agreed to by the diocese are the minimum schools should make if the right to withdraw is to be at all viable. Too often children withdrawn from religious worship are marked out and excluded.
"While this settlement is good news for the family, we question why a school with a community ethos had to be legally challenged before such sensible concessions were made.
"This settlement is a reminder that the requirement on schools to hold worship during assemblies is an anachronism which undermines children and families' freedom of religion and belief. Parliament should repeal it, so it no longer provides cover those seeking to impose a religious ethos."
Other objections
The Harrises also objected to several other religious practices at the school, including evangelical visits and the use of the local church to host key events.
The settlement said the school would:
- Ensure school announcements were not made in worship assemblies so pupils did not miss out if they were withdrawn;
- Only encourage children to pray and present religion as fact during collective worship;
- Provide guidance for external visitors and offer parents an opportunity to witness a visit from an evangelical group to the school;
- Ensure major school events were not held in the local church by default.
Notes
- The Harrises' legal case was supported by the charity Humanists UK.
- Lee Harris outlined the way Burford primary had become "Christian by default" in a blog for the NSS in December 2018.
- In a legal submission to the high court the Harrises argued that the school's policy constituted indoctrination and breached their right to freedom of belief under the Human Rights Act 1998 and the European convention on human rights.
- Burford primary joined the ODST in 2015 under the condition that its community school ethos would be protected. The NSS has repeatedly warned that there are insufficient protections for a community school ethos when non faith schools are taken over by religious academies.
- All the provisions in the settlement will end when the Harrises' children leave the school.
See also
The government must respond to pressure to end compulsory school worship
Parents challenge academy’s Christian assemblies in court
Posted: Mon, 29 Jul 2019 16:08
A couple have launched a legal challenge against a primary school over its assemblies where children take part in Christian prayers and watch re-enactments of biblical stories.
Lee and Lizanne Harris have launched a judicial review against Burford primary, a non-faith school in Oxfordshire which joined a Church of England trust in 2015.
At the school's church-led assemblies the parents say children have been encouraged to participate in prayer, Christianity has been taught as truth and biblical stories such as the crucifixion have been acted out.
The school's website says that during assemblies "Bible stories are read and brought to life through interactive drama using mime, costume, props, puppets and sound effects, with the children also getting involved".
The school has used the local church to host key events and at a recent leavers' assembly children were presented with a Bible as a leaving gift and 'guide in life'.
Burford primary joined the C of E's Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST) under the condition that its community school ethos would be protected.
The Harrises plan to argue that the school must provide an inclusive assembly as a meaningful alternative for pupils withdrawn from Christian worship. They withdrew their children from assemblies but the school put them in side rooms where they were supervised by teaching assistants.
Schools in England and Wales are legally required to provide "an act of collective worship" under the 1944 Education Act, though many schools ignore the law with the tacit approval of Ofsted and the Department for Education.
Parents have the right to withdraw children from collective worship, but many regard this as an unreasonable imposition on themselves and their children.
The National Secular Society, which campaigns to scrap the collective worship law, highlighted the couple's case last year and has provided advice and support to them.
The NSS raised the case with DfE representatives in February. At that meeting the society also raised broader concerns about coercive worship requirements and the lack of protection for the ethos of community schools which are taken over by faith based trusts.
The NSS is now writing to education secretary Gavin Williamson to raise these issues.
NSS supporters can write to their MPs or sign the NSS's petition on the subject.
NSS education and schools officer Alastair Lichten said: "It is past time for the government to address the anachronism of mandated worship and the mess it creates. School authorities should have no role directing or imposing worship, especially when it is inappropriate for a school's ethos and community.
"Many community ethos schools conduct inclusive ethical and topical assemblies with no directed worship. This should be replicated elsewhere. We at least need greater clarity on the right to withdraw and meaningful alternatives, though it would be simpler and fairer if any worship that does take place was opt in, voluntary and not school directed.
"We should also remember that this situation has arisen in part because a C of E diocese was selected to run a non-faith school. Time and again we have seen the totally inadequate protection for a community school ethos, when non-faith schools are taken over by faith based trusts. The C of E is absolutely clear that it sees any non-faith school it controls as part of its 'mission', including through imposing worship."
The Harrises' case, which is being supported by the charity Humanists UK, will be heard at the High Court in November.
In a statement, the couple said: "We enrolled our children into a state community school – which is meant to have no religious character – but over time we noticed harmful aspects of evangelism spreading into assembly and other parts of the school which goes against our children's rights to receive an education free from religious interference.
"When our children go to school they shouldn't have to participate in Christian prayers, or watch biblical scenes such as the crucifixion being acted out, nor should they have to hear from evangelical preachers who spout harmful and often divisive messages.
"We also don't think it's acceptable that they be left to play with an iPad because we've withdrawn them. They should be able to participate in an inclusive assembly that is of equal educational worth and which is welcoming and respectful of all students no matter their background."
The parents have previously raised their concerns within the school but they have been dismissed. Their children joined the school before it joined the ODST.
The ODST runs 33 church and community schools, attended by more than 6,100 children.
Its website says the trust is "motivated by our Christian values to serve our local communities" but claims "we do not impose those values".
In a statement it said it was "confident that Burford primary school, as a community school, has acted entirely appropriately, and has followed all statutory requirements".
See also: My children's school has become Christian by default, by Lee Harris for the NSS.
