Consultation on New Guidance for Religious Education in England: Take Action!

Read: Religious education in English schools: Non‑statutory guidance 2009

What is the issue?

On 30th April, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) issued new draft guidance on the teaching of Religious Education (RE) in English schools for public consultation, which ended on 24th July.

The guidance is intended to replace that issued in 1994 (Circular 1/94) which was widely believed, even at the time, to represent very poor advice on RE. The BHA was represented on the steering group that helped to produce the new draft, and we welcome the fact that, in many ways, it is an advance on the previous guidance, but it fails to address our two principal concerns in RE:

• that RE should be the study of both religious and non-religious beliefs;
• that humanists should have the same right to be full members of the local committees writing and overseeing RE syllabuses as religious people have.

What do we want?

• We want the government to use the Human Rights Act to make it explicit that references to ‘religion’ in the present law on RE should be read as references to ‘religion or belief’. 

• This would mean that non-religious philosophies such as Humanism would be included by right in the subject, rather than just be recommendation as present. 

• In particular, we want the references to the content of RE as being about ‘principal religions’ to be read as ‘principal religions or beliefs’ 

• and the eligibility for full membership of Standing Advisory Councils for RE (SACREs – the local committees that oversee RE) and Agreed Syllabus Conferences (ASCs – the local committees that set the RE syllabus) as a representatives of ‘religions’ to be read as ‘religions or beliefs’, giving humanists the explicit right to be full members alongside the religious representatives.

• The phrase ‘religion or belief’ is taken from the language of the Human Rights Act and it includes non-religious beliefs such as Humanism. 

The phrase ‘religion or belief’ is already used in the government’s national framework for RE (2004) and in the RE section of the secondary curriculum (2007) as well as in the proposed new primary curriculum (2009). In those places, it is made clear that it includes Humanism.

• It is very important that this should be the case in the new guidance, and that it should be made clear that this is the interpretation that should be given to the law on RE in light of the Human Rights Act, 

which forbids discrimination on grounds of religion or belief by public authorities and in section 3 requires existing legislation to be 'read and given effect in a way which is compatible with the Convention rights'.

The BHA's own Director of Education and Public Affairs, Andrew Copson, has recently given a recorded interview about the BHA's position on RE to Teachers TV, an organisation which supports the professional development of teachers and others working in schools.

What can you do?

	Although the public consultation on the proposed new RE guidance has now closed, there is still scope to petition the government. It is not too late to email your MP, using the BHA’s easy online facility and urge him or her to make your views known to the government and support changing the guidance.
	You can email your local councillor and ask that they get your council to support the changes to the RE guidance we are looking for and then make its view known to the government. You can also make a direct request to the councillor who holds the education portfolio. They are often known as the Portfolio Holder for Children & Young People or Children’s Services – your council website or general inquires line should provide you with their details.
	If you are a teacher, you could explore the possibility of your school contacting the Department for Children, Schools and Families urging the changes we are looking for.
	If you are a teacher of RE, or otherwise involved in RE as a professional you can contact the National Association of Teachers of RE or Association of RE Inspectors Advisers and Consultants (AREIAC) and urge them to contact the government supporting the changes we are seeking.
	If you are a member of a SACRE, whether as a humanist or not, you can urge your SACRE or local authority to contact the government asking that they support the changes we are seeking. You could contact your local SACRE even if you are not involved, to find out what position they and your local authority are taking on these issues. There is a partial list of SACREs online.
	If you are a member of a political party, you can write to the education contact or spokesperson of your party to urge them to support the changes we are seeking. For Labour, this is Rt Hon. Ed Balls MP,  for Conservatives this is Michael Gove MP, for Liberal Democrats this is David Laws MP.

Please copy any submissions you make or correspondence you enter into on this subject to Paul Pettinger at the BHA by email or by post to British Humanist Association, 1 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HD.

Related documents

• BHA Response to REG Consultation (24 Jul 2009, PDF 229 Kb)