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
Edinburgh Council ends religious reps’ voting powers
Posted: Thu, 31 Aug 2023 13:53
Decision to end voting privileges for unelected religious appointees at City of Edinburgh Council welcomed by NSS
Faith schools repeatedly refuse to teach about same sex relationships
Posted: Thu, 27 Jul 2023 11:45
Three independent faith schools are refusing to teach about same sex relationships despite previous criticisms from inspectors.
According to Ofsted reports published this month, three Jewish faith schools in London have failed to meet independent school standards because they do not teach the required content in relationships and sex education (RSE).
Leaders at Beis Trana Girls' School told Ofsted they "do not intend to teach pupils about the legal rights and responsibilities" regarding equality.
Although statutory guidance for the RSE curriculum mandates teaching about the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010 - including sexual orientation and religion and belief -. orthodox Jewish faith schools frequently refuse to teach about protected characteristics due to religious objections to same sex relationships.
Pupils at Beis Trana are not "taught about all the ways that people can be different" and how these differences are protected by law. Ofsted said that as a result of the school's approach, pupils "were not being prepared for life in modern Britain".
This latest inspection at Beis Trana follows a full inspection in 2022, which rated the school "inadequate". The 2022 inspection noted secondary school age pupils "are not taught about the different types of relationships that people may have and the legal rights of those with protected characteristics".
Beis Trana has not received a rating above "requires improvement" since 2014.
Meanwhile, Ofsted found that leaders at Shiras Devorah High School continue to omit "any encouragement of respect for other people" with particular regard to the protected characteristics of "sexual orientation, civil partnership or gender reassignment".
The school's leadership did not explain how they intend "to encourage pupils to respect others". No changes have been made to the RSE curriculum since the school's previous inspection in 2019, when it was found to "not permit reference to all of the protected characteristics" set out in the Equality Act.
At both Beis Trana and Shiras Devorah, school leaders told Ofsted inspectors not to speak to pupils about relationships and sex education. They also confirmed their refusal to teach about sexual orientation and other protected characteristics was due to their faith ethos and parents' wishes.
In another report, Ofsted said leaders at Bnei Zion Community School were "still not providing pupils with an understanding of differences in modern British society", including the protected characteristics. Bnei Zion has been judged to be 'inadequate' since 2016, when Ofsted similarly found pupils were "not given opportunities to learn about people of other faiths or those of none, or about different lifestyles and values".
Although new plans had been drawn up for personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, they did not "accurately reflect what is taught", or include "what pupils need to know" and what they should be taught about "other religions, faiths, beliefs and cultures".
The school also prevented inspectors from asking pupils anything about "sex, sexual orientation, civil partnership or gender reassignment".
Ofsted said the school is continuing to breach its registration agreement by admitting 172 pupils between the ages of three and 11. The school is registered to admit up to 200 pupils between the ages of three and five only.
NSS: 'Disregard for RSE shows contempt for the law'
Jack Rivington, campaigns officer at the National Secular Society, said: "Ofsted has repeatedly found Beis Trana, Shiras Devorah, and Bnei Zion refusing to teach about different kinds of people and relationships due to religious concerns.
"As well as failing to fully prepare students for life in Britain, this repeated flagrant disregard for legal requirements show contempt for Ofsted and the independent school standards.
"For a school to openly admit it has no intention of following the regulations is unacceptable. Ofsted must be sufficiently empowered to deal with schools that flout the law in this way, whatever their religious ethos".
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)
