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
Andrew Moffat to deliver Bradlaugh Lecture in Manchester
Posted: Wed, 19 Jun 2019 11:17
A teacher targeted by religious protesters for teaching about LGBT+ equality will speak at the National Secular Society's 2019 Bradlaugh Lecture.
Andrew Moffat, assistant headteacher at Parkfield Community School in Birmingham, will talk about his 'No Outsiders' scheme for teaching about equality and diversity at primary schools on Saturday 7 September.
The lecture – named after NSS founder Charles Bradlaugh – is an annual event which provides a space for a distinguished speaker to explore a secularist topic in depth.
The No Outsiders scheme aims to prepare children for life in modern Britain by teaching that everyone should be respected and accepted, no matter what their race, religion or sexual orientation.
Moffat became the targets of aggressive protests and threats at the beginning of 2019. The protesters, most of whom were Muslim, objected to children being taught about LGBT+ people because they said it went against their religious beliefs.
Other schools that have used the No Outsiders scheme have also been targeted by protesters.
Moffat will introduce his vision for inclusive education and dispel the myths and misinformation about No Outsiders. He will reflect on what he has learnt as an openly gay teacher at schools where most children have been from Muslim backgrounds.
He will explain why all children, regardless of their religious background, have a right to learn about the diversity of UK society.
Announcing the lecture, National Secular Society chief executive, Stephen Evans, said:
"Andrew Moffat has found himself at the centre of a culture war over the teaching of tolerance to those of all genders and sexualities, which has manifested itself in protests outside Birmingham's schools.
Perceptions of the 'No Outsiders' programme, and relationships education more broadly, have been plagued by misinformation, exaggeration and myth. This lecture will be a fantastic opportunity to hear from Andrew himself about the intention behind 'No Outsiders' and about its role in combating bigotry and helping pupils to understand the world around them."
The lecture will take place at the Manchester Art Gallery, which displays a portrait of Bradlaugh by Walter Sickert. Sickert's piece – donated by the NSS's Manchester branch in 1911 – is an iconic image of Bradlaugh standing at the bar of the House of Commons, forbidden on account of his atheism from taking up the seat to which he had been elected multiple times.
The lecture will be followed by an audience Q&A and a drinks reception. Tickets are just £15 – and NSS members get a discount.
NSS criticises decision to fund new discriminatory faith school
Posted: Fri, 14 Jun 2019 06:40
The National Secular Society has criticised government plans to fund a new religiously selective faith school in Peterborough.
Education secretary Damian Hinds has approved, in principle, a bid for funding to open Hampton Waters Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided (VA) School in Peterborough to "meet demand from parents in the city".
The announcement was made alongside news that 22 new free schools – including three Church of England schools – had been approved to open across the country.
As highlighted by the No More Faith Schools campaign, the decision to approve funding for the Hampton Waters Roman Catholic School could scupper pre-existing plans for new inclusive schools without a faith designation in Peterborough.
National Secular Society chief executive, Stephen Evans, called the decision to approve a new discriminatory faith school "regressive".
"Where new schools are needed, they should be organised around an inclusive community ethos, rather than an exclusive religious one. Public money should only support schools which guarantee equality of access and esteem to all pupils.
"The decision to fund this religiously selective school may well come at the expense of alternative proposals for primary schools without faith designation. It would be a grave injustice if the opening of a new faith school with the power to turn children away on religious grounds curtails plans to open an inclusive secular school that serves all families equally."
He said the NSS will be urging the local authority, which is supposed to play a key role in approving new schools, to oppose any new religiously selective VA school.
The school is one of 14 bids for funding to open faith schools which could select all their children on the basis of their parents' religion.
Voluntary aided faith schools are able to give priority for up to 100% of their places on faith-based admissions criteria; appoint all teachers by reference to faith; and provide religious education and worship according to the tenets of the faith of the school. Religious bodies contribute 10% of the capital costs with 100% of the running costs met by public funding.
Details of the funding scheme for a wave of new VA faith schools were announced last November. The move was designed to satisfy the demands of the Catholic Education Service, which has refused to open new free schools which do not have the option of 100% religious selection if oversubscribed.
The Government's own equality impact assessment found the decision to open a new wave of VA schools would disadvantage families and teachers who do not share those schools' religion.
The National Secular Society co-ordinates the No More Faith Schools campaign, which is dedicated to bringing about an end to state funded faith schools.
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)
