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
Independent school still not teaching about evolution after warning
Posted: Fri, 14 May 2021 15:09
An independent faith school which was recently subject to government regulatory action after being found teaching creationism as science has failed a further inspection.
In January it was revealed that Bnois Jerusalem Girls School, a Jewish school in north London, had been given a statutory notice after it failed to meet standards in multiple inspections.
And this week an Ofsted report has revealed that "teaching about the scientific theories behind the origins of life" was still "completely omitted" at the school during an inspection in March.
The report also said the content of the school's secular curriculum "remains narrow" and pupils were "not allowed to talk about" same-sex relationships or gender reassignment "at any time".
The school's previous failings have included teaching creationism in geography and science and failing to enter pupils for exams at GCSE level because leaders were not allowed to censor exam papers.
Poor report for Lubavitch Senior Boys' School
Meanwhile another independent Jewish school, Lubavitch Senior Boys School in north London, has been given a similarly poor report in an additional inspection.
The school had previously been told it devoted insufficient time to secular studies. In the new report inspectors said leaders had made "no progress" in improving "the breadth of the secular curriculum" and the range of subjects taught remained "very narrow".
NSS response
The National Secular Society wrote to the government last year to raise concerns over children's rights at several independent faith schools which had repeatedly failed inspections, including both Bnois Jerusalem and Lubavitch Senior Boys.
The NSS has now written to ministers again to ask them how they plan to respond.
NSS chief executive Stephen Evans said: "Schools which substantially restrict their secular curricula, including in some cases by refusing to teach about evolution, are failing the children they serve and should be held to account.
"Ministers should take robust action to protect children's educational rights. They must ensure schools can't simply defy reasonable oversight."
Statutory notices and follow-up
Independent schools that are issued with statutory notices are required to submit an action plan for improvement, and are then monitored more tightly than other schools.
That process can ultimately lead to a school being removed from the register of independent schools, meaning it can no longer legally operate.
Legal position on creationism in schools
Legal standards allow independent schools to teach creationism as part of a belief system, but also say "it should not be presented as having a similar or superior evidence base to scientific theories".
Failings in independent faith schools
In 2020, 80 independent faith schools were given warning notices – a less severe penalty than a statutory notice – after failing inspections.
Common failings at these schools have included gaps in secular education, failing to teach about LGBT+ people and safeguarding issues.
All pupils withdrawn from sex education at independent Jewish school
Posted: Wed, 12 May 2021 16:59
Every parent has withdrawn their child from sex education classes at an independent faith school with nearly 250 pupils in Gateshead, an inspection report has revealed.
The latest Ofsted report for Ateres Girls High School, published on Tuesday, said "all parents have exercised their right" to withdraw their children from the teaching of sex education.
Ateres Girls is an Orthodox Jewish independent school for girls aged 11-16, with 246 pupils on roll.
However, the report said leaders "have fulfilled their statutory responsibilities regarding the teaching of relationships, health and sex education," because the school had allowed for sex education to be taught by "an external provider from within the Jewish community".
Relationships and sex education
According to the report, the school consulted with parents about the content of sex education lessons and informed them that they could withdraw their children from them.
The sex education policy "anticipates that parents are likely to withdraw their child", the report said.
All parents withdrew their children following the consultation.
Equality issues
The school failed its inspection because pupils are not taught about sexual orientation or gender reassignment and consequently are "not being prepared fully for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life in British society".
The school was rated as 'requires improvement' in its previous inspection in 2019 as it refused to allow pupils to be taught about LGBT people. It was issued a warning notice as a result in 2020.
Schools are required to promote equality and pupils' understanding of the protected characteristics which are outlined in equality law.
Forced marriage in Jewish communities
In February a report from Jewish counter-extremism group Nahamu highlighted how a lack of relationships and sex education (RSE) contributes to forced marriage in Charedi ('ultra Orthodox') Jewish communities.
It said the lack of RSE in Charedi schools means engaged couples may not be prepared for sexual relations, may not understand consent, and may not recognise abusive behaviours.
It also said the exclusion of any reference to LGBT+ people in Orthodox Jewish schools means LGBT+ people in Charedi communities face "very serious issues of consent" when presented with a universal expectation of early, heterosexual marriage.
NSS comment
National Secular Society head of policy and research Megan Manson said: "It is alarming that a school where no pupils are receiving sex education can be considered to be meeting statutory responsibilities to provide RSE. It risks setting a precedent that renders the standards used to regulate independent schools meaningless.
"With the problem of forced marriages in Orthodox Jewish communities increasingly coming to light, it is increasingly important to ensure all children, regardless of their parents' religious background, have access to age-appropriate, objective and inclusive RSE."
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)
