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
Council defends plans to extend selection in Catholic schools
Posted: Wed, 22 Apr 2020 13:22
Renfrewshire Council looks set to extend the priority it gives to children who are baptised Catholic for admission to Catholic schools after defending its plans to the National Secular Society.
The council has taken the unusual step of writing directly to the NSS defending its proposals after the NSS submitted a response to a council consultation.
Currently children in Renfrewshire are allocated schools based on where they live. If schools are oversubscribed places are allocated by ballot, with no religious test applying at that stage.
Baptised Catholics are only given priority if parents then request a Catholic school instead of their allocated school.
Under the proposed changes parents would be asked to submit Catholic baptismal certificates before the council allocates places.
Children with baptism certificates would even take priority over children with siblings at the same Catholic school and children who have medical needs that cannot be accommodated in any other school.
The council will also base the initial allocation of a child's secondary school on the denomination of their current school and their home address. Currently the child's address is the only factor at this stage of the process.
Last month the NSS told the council the plans would "disadvantage non-Catholic families and further segregate communities".
Council's letter
The council claimed it was "not excluding any group through the proposal but merely seeking to form guidelines to be able to prioritise places should a school be oversubscribed by catchment pupils, in an equitable and fair way and recognising the arrangements that can be made in respect of Roman Catholic schools".
The letter made no reference to concerns which the NSS raised around sectarian divisions, ethnic and socio-economic segregation and the potential impact on children with medical needs, such as wheelchair users.
It repeatedly referred to the fact the changes to admissions procedures will only apply if schools are oversubscribed, which the NSS had already taken into account in its submission.
The letter indicated that the council is currently preparing a full report on the matter for its board.
NSS response
An NSS spokesperson described the letter as "disappointing waffle" which had "failed to address several significant issues which we raised in our consultation response".
"Prioritising places in publicly funded schools for pupils in possession of a certificate of baptism is neither equitable nor fair."
The society added that it would await the council's full report before commenting further.
Image: St Benedict's High School, Catholic school in Linwood, Renfrewshire; © Leslie Barrie, via geograph (cropped); [CC BY-SA 2.0]
Don’t extend selection in Catholic schools, NSS urges council
Posted: Mon, 30 Mar 2020 14:01
The National Secular Society has urged Renfrewshire Council not to extend the priority it gives to children who are baptised Catholic for admission to Catholic schools.
The NSS made the call in response to a council consultation over plans to ask parents to submit Catholic baptismal certificates before it allocates places.
The NSS said the plans would "disadvantage non-Catholic families and further segregate communities".
Currently children in Renfrewshire are allocated schools based on where they live. If schools are oversubscribed places are allocated by ballot, with no religious test applying at that stage.
Baptised Catholics are only given priority if parents then request a Catholic school instead of their allocated school.
Under the proposed changes children with baptism certificates would even take priority over children with siblings at the same Catholic school and children who have medical needs that cannot be accommodated in any other school. The latter category would include wheelchair users.
The NSS said it was "particularly disturbed" by these proposals.
"Such criteria clearly place the desire of the Catholic Church to maximise the number of Catholics in the schools it controls over the welfare needs of pupils and their families."
The council will also base the initial allocation of a child's secondary school on the denomination of their current school and their home address. Currently the child's address is the only factor at this stage of the process.
The NSS's response also said:
- Introducing further religious selection in admissions would "needlessly exacerbate sectarian divisions as well as ethnic and socio-economic segregation".
- The proposals were "neither compatible with basic democratic principles, nor with the council's duty to treat all citizens under its jurisdiction equally and fairly".
NSS spokesperson Megan Manson said the council should "look again at these divisive and unhelpful plans".
"There's no justification for restricting access to publicly funded schools based on the religious beliefs of children or their families.
"Basing access to schools on the possession of a religious certificate will stir resentment and embed discrimination, undermining efforts to promote equality. And dividing children along religious lines will harm efforts to promote social cohesion.
"The council should work to make schools more inclusive and put the interests of its residents before those of the Catholic Church."
The council's rationale
In the consultation, the council says the proposal will allow it to "fulfil its duty to provide education to children and young people who are baptised into the Roman Catholic Church in a denominational school".
Further notes
- The consultation will end on Tuesday. Responses can be submitted here.
- If approved, the policy is due to take effect for the August 2021/22 intake.
- There are 16 Catholic primary schools and three Catholic secondary schools in Renfrewshire. There are no other state-funded faith schools in the area.
Photo: St Peter's Primary School, Paisley (Catholic school in Renfrewshire); © Leslie Barrie [CC BY-SA 2.0]
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)
