Faith schools undermine equality, choice and social cohesion.
Let's build an inclusive education system today, to ensure an inclusive society tomorrow.
Our education system should be open and welcoming to all. That's why we want publicly funded faith schools phased out and an end to religiously selective school admissions.
Around a third of publicly funded schools in England and Wales are faith schools – schools with a religious character. Scottish and Northern Irish schools are still divided along sectarian lines.
Separating children according to religion is divisive and leads to religious, ethnic and socio-economic segregation.
To make matters worse, many faith schools can discriminate against pupils and teachers who do not share the religion of the school.
Parents are entitled to raise their children within a faith tradition, but they are not entitled to enlist the help of the state to do so. The state should not allow the schools it funds to inculcate children into a particular religion.
Faith schools seriously limit choice for parents who do not want a religious education for their children, or do not share the faith of the local school. Our research has found that 18,000 families were assigned faith schools against their wishes in England in 2017 alone.
Despite a consistent and dramatic decline in church attendance, and a growing majority of non-religious citizens, successive governments have paved the way for ever greater religious involvement in education, often to the detriment of inclusive community schools.
A secular approach to education would ensure publicly funded schools are equally welcoming to all children, regardless of their backgrounds.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Please call on your MP to support a secular, inclusive education system for all.
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
NSS leads call for national inquiry into school admissions
Posted: Tue, 19 Mar 2019 13:00
The National Secular Society has raised concerns about the impact of faith-based discrimination and segregation as it jointly coordinated a call for an inquiry into England's school admissions system.
A coalition of 40 politicians, experts, activists and educationalists have called on the education select committee to instigate a review in an open letter to The Observer.
The NSS and Comprehensive Future, which campaigns for inclusive schooling, coordinated the letter, which criticised the "increasingly complex and fragmented school admissions system".
Its signatories included Labour MP David Lammy, Layla Moran of the Liberal Democrats and Green MP Caroline Lucas.
The letter highlights recent initiatives which will increase faith-based selection to schools. In November the government committed funds to a new wave of voluntary aided (VA) faith schools, which can select all their pupils on the basis of their parents' religion.
The NSS is strongly opposing plans to open new VA schools.
The letter says an inquiry is "long overdue" and admissions arrangements should be "transparent, just and easily understandable to all families".
Stephen Evans, the NSS's chief executive, said: "Recent policy on school admissions has entrenched religious division and privilege in the school admissions system. As a result children are increasingly segregated by their parents' faith, while families who do not want to send their children to faith schools are left unable to find suitable school places.
"And the government's approval for a wave of new 100% selective faith schools threatens to make this worse.
"An inquiry would help to address the discrimination and unfairness that faith-based admissions have caused in the education system."
The letter's other signatories included: Kevin Courtney and Mary Bousted of the National Education Union; Professor Becky Francis, the director of the UCL Institute of Education; and activists Andrew Copson of Humanists UK and Rev Stephen Terry of the Accord Coalition for Inclusive Education.
Comprehensive Future's chair Dr. Nuala Burgess said the group had "found overwhelming support for a review of school admissions" and there had been "no proper review" of the admissions system "for years".
In a separate joint letter to members of the education select committee, the NSS wrote: "We would like to see an admissions system which allows children of all backgrounds an equal chance to succeed, is easily understandable by all parents, accountable to local communities and allows both schools and local authorities to plan for future school need in some of our most stretched and segregated areas."
The letter drew attention to the NSS's recent report, The choice delusion, which outlined the ways in which faith schools restrict primary school choice for many families in England.
The report found that almost three in ten families across England live in areas where most or all of the closest primary schools are faith schools. Almost 8,000 families who missed out on their first choice of a non-faith primary school in September 2018 were assigned to faith schools.
The open letter in full:
"When Theresa May came to power in 2017, she pledged to review our increasingly complex and fragmented school admissions system.
"Such an inquiry is long overdue, following significant changes to our school landscape over the last decade. Over 70% of secondary schools now act as their own admissions authority and local authorities have little say in how pupils are admitted to schools in their area. In addition, recent policy initiatives point the way to increasing numbers of pupils being selected for grammar and faith schools.
"School admissions lie at the very heart of our school system, and how fair such a system is perceived to be. Arrangements should be transparent, just, and easily understandable to all families.
"We therefore call upon the Education Select Committee, as a matter of urgency, to set up an inquiry into school admissions."
Birmingham school suspends diversity lessons despite Ofsted backing
Posted: Thu, 14 Mar 2019 14:40
A school has suspended lessons about diversity amid objections from predominantly Muslim parents over references to LGBT people, despite backing for its curriculum from Ofsted inspectors.
Parkfield Community School in Birmingham, where almost all children are from Muslim backgrounds, has been at the centre of a coordinated campaign against its 'No Outsiders' lessons in recent weeks.
Those objecting to the lessons have organised protests and mass withdrawals of children, while a member of staff who organised the lessons has reportedly been subjected to a personal campaign of abuse and threats.
In a statement on Wednesday the school said it would not resume teaching the lessons "until a resolution has been reached" with parents who object to the programme.
"Nothing is more important than ensuring our children's education continues uninterrupted.
"We are eager to continue to work together with parents over the coming days and weeks to find a solution that will support the children in our school to continue their education in a harmonious environment."
The school said the decision had come after a meeting between parents, the trust which runs the school and the regional schools commissioner.
Members of a parents' group behind the protests also reported having "a positive meeting" with the Department for Education (DfE) about the lessons this week.
National Secular Society chief executive Stephen Evans described the decision as "very alarming" and said it raised "uncomfortable questions for the Department for Education".
"Parents fuelled by intolerance, prejudice and misinformation have shamefully used their children as bargaining chips to bully school leaders into suspending these lessons about diversity.
"This sets a damaging precedent which will harm children's right to a decent education, undermine teachers, fuel intolerance towards LGBT people and encourage more unreasonable religious demands.
"We must resist efforts to change school curricula to fit the bigoted agendas of vocal groups of parents."
The NSS wrote to schools minister Nick Gibb last week to urge the DfE to provide "unequivocal support" to the school and Moffatt.
The school's decision to suspend the lessons comes despite a letter from the education watchdog Ofsted which backed the school's curriculum earlier this week.
Ofsted inspectors paid a short visit to the school last month after parents claimed the 'No Outsiders' lessons focused disproportionately on LGBT issues and was not age-appropriate.
In a letter summarising its findings last week it said it had found no evidence to support the claims.
The letter praised the school's record on promoting "tolerance, acceptance and mutual respect" and described it as "a cohesive community".
"Staff from a wide range of cultures and beliefs work well together and actively model tolerance, acceptance and mutual respect. As a result, pupils are consistently courteous, considerate and respectful of others."
The report also noted that most pupils who spoke to inspectors said the school's lessons and extra-curricular activities helped to "bring pupils together" so "no one is left out".
It said a "very small, but vocal, minority of parents" were "not clear about the school's vision, policies and practice".
It also reaffirmed the school's previously-issued 'outstanding' rating.
This weekend the education secretary Damian Hinds indicated that he would back heads' judgement in teaching about LGBT issues in remarks to Schools Week.
"I've always been clear that I support headteachers to make decisions and we believe in school autonomy, that school leaders are best placed to make decisions.
"Of course, it's also right to consult with parents. That is just good practice anyway, but yes I do back headteachers."
Mr Evans said these words "need to be backed up by actions".
"These comments appeared, at face value, to be a reminder that heads had the authority to resist unreasonable religious parental pressure. But they will be meaningless if the DfE does not take action to support schools which come under that pressure."
In recent weeks there have been sizable protests against the No Outsiders lessons outside Parkfield's school gates. Christian and Jewish protesters have joined Muslims in criticising the school.
Last week a widely-shared video emerged from outside the school showing protesters claiming the lessons were "aggressively promoting" LGBT "lifestyles".
A speaker also complained that the lessons suggested "it is okay for you to be Muslim and for you to be gay". Parents and pupils responded by chanting "shame, shame, shame".
Earlier this month an estimated 600 pupils – around 80% of the school roll – were withdrawn from school in protest against No Outsiders.
The school's latest statement expressed "hope" that children would now not be removed again to take part in protests.
Parkfield had initially indicated that a suspension in the 'No Outsiders' lessons was the result of a pre-planned break in the curriculum for the current half-term. It had said they would continue after the Easter break.
The row comes amid gathering religious opposition to teaching about relationships and sex. Primarily religious campaigners, including the mainly Muslim group Stop RSE, are opposing the teaching of a new curriculum on relationships, sex and health (RSHE).
All schools will be required to teach RSHE from September 2020. Last month the government resisted religious pressure to extend parents' right to withdraw their children from RSHE when the new guidance comes into force.
Note: This story was updated on Thursday 14 March to reflect the school's decision to suspend the lessons.
More information
Protect relationships and sex education
Age-appropriate relationships and sex education should be every child’s right.
Remove religious appointees from Scottish councils
Religion shouldn’t grant people privileged places in local democracy.
Research and reports
The faith schools research bank
The choice delusion: how faith schools restrict school choice
Three in ten families across England live in areas where most or all of the closest primary schools are faith schools and thousands are being assigned faith schools against their wishes.
Power grab: Academisation and the threat to secular education
Academisation has enabled faith groups to increase their influence over all schools, including those with no religious character. With little public debate, religious governance has increased, while secular oversight has diminished.
Religiosity inspections: the case against faith-based reviews of state schools
Faith based inspections of state schools are an unnecessary drain on public finds, frame widely held values as exclusive, and promote biased religious education.
Faith-shaped holes: How religious privilege is undermining equality law (PDF, 1.3 Mb)
