The British Humanist Association (BHA) is the national organisation leading the opposition to state-funded ‘faith’ schools. In particular, since 2007 the BHA has employed the UK’s only dedicated campaigner against ‘faith’ schools. This campaigner works hard to oppose their discriminatory, divisive nature in the media, to government and in support of local campaigns across the country.
We need your help to support this important post for another year. Please donate today.
There are over 7,000 such schools in England and Wales, and this number is rising at an alarming rate. Most ‘faith’ schools are able to apply religious criteria discriminate in admissions and in employing all teachers and even some non-teaching staff. The religious groups running them can set their own RE curriculum and they can teach sex and relationships education from their perspective.
And with many existing schools converting to Academies and the first new Free Schools opening as we speak, ‘faith’ schools are gaining more control over their curricula, which they now entirely set themselves. Those that cannot currently discriminate in their admissions criteria are often gaining the ability to do so. And teachers at Academies and Free Schools are not required to hold qualified teacher status.
The BHA works towards a situation where ‘faith’ schools are reformed to the extent that they are absorbed back into the mainstream inclusive schools system; and those inclusive schools, in turn, teach high quality religious education, personal, social, economic and health education, and do not hold a daily act of collective worship. The work of the ‘faith’ schools campaigner provides a voice for those opposed to ‘faith’ schools, and represents their views at the national level.
Over the past year, the campaigner has:
· Worked with the All Party Parliamentary Humanist Group to bring forth amendments to both the Academies Act 2010 and the Education Bill, to brief MPs and peers on those amendments and so to ensure a proper debate is held over the continuing role of faith in our education system.
· Issued a number of other parliamentary briefings, including on the teaching of religious education, on collective worship and in defence of sex and relationships education
· Responded to consultations on the curriculum, on the English Baccalaureate and on admissions
· Worked through the media to raise awareness of the issues and ensure our perspective is heard
· Continued to research issues surrounding ‘faith’ schools and relevant areas of education
· Supported dozens of parents, teachers and pupils dealing with issues they surrounding admissions, collective worship, RE, sex and relationships education and creationism
· Supported a large number of local campaigns against ‘faith’ schools and in favour of inclusive alternatives – currently eight
· Worked closely with the Accord Coalition, an alliance of religious and non-religious groups for the reform of ‘faith’ schools, of which it is a founding member
· Represented non-religious and secularist views in meetings with external stakeholders
· Worked to ensure there is a Humanist representative as a full voting member of every Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE)
Donations will be used to ensure we can employ our dedicated campaigns officer for another year and fund his campaigning activities. Any money donated beyond our target will be spent on BHA education campaigns.
This work is more important than ever before. Please donate generously to help us continue to fight a well-resourced, deeply entrenched opposition.
