Agenda item

To consider a report of the Director of Children’s Services regarding a request for a determination from SACRE on an application for an exemption from the requirement for a collective worship to be “wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character”.

SACRE considered a report of the Director of Children’s Services requesting the determination of an application for an exemption from the requirement for Christian Collective Worship (Item 8 in the Minute Book).

Referring to the report the County Inspector/Adviser, explained the background to this item and highlighted the salient points in the report which SACRE needed to consider. As per the agreed process a small working group of SACRE members had discussed in detail the application in the context of the legislation and guidance and the documents provided by the school,  together with additional legal guidance, and had come to the conclusion to recommend refusing the application.

Following legal advice, it was recognised that the key question that SACRE had to answer in making the determination was whether it was appropriate for the requirement for Christian collective worship to apply to Poulner Infant School having due regard to the circumstances of the family backgrounds (paragraph 7 in the report).  It was noted that, according to the application, 34% of parents at Poulner Infant School identified themselves as Christian, the largest religious group.  Furthermore, that any parent had a right to withdraw their child from collective worship but no withdrawals had been recorded by the school.

The legislation and guidance surrounding collective worship was explained and, in particular, the statutory requirement for children to take part in a daily act of collective worship and the lack of definition of collective worship in the legislation was discussed. In this case the common and natural meaning of collective worship was used as stated in the guidance (paragraph 57). It was again noted that parents can withdraw their child from collective worship. 

The legal advisers to SACRE reiterated the legal question to be considered by SACRE “whether it is appropriate for the requirement imposed by paragraph 3(2) of Schedule 20 to the 1998 Act (requirement for Christian collective worship) to apply in the case of the school”. Attention was drawn to the information provided by the school on the question asked of parents “What religion do you belong to?”. The legal adviser stressed that SACRE would want to consider the impact on each group (Christian and other groups) of the decision as identified in the evidence .

Members discussed the application and acknowledged that an outcome to remove the requirement for collective worship was not within SACRE’s authority according to the legislation.  The legal advisers explained that from the research that they had carried out, which had been based on Brent and not everywhere, there was no record of any other council making a determination for no faith or to remove the requirement for collective worship.  Amongst SACRE Members there was some sympathy for the school’s request, but the need to adhere to the legislation was stressed and it was accepted that any change to this could only be made by parliament.

Members divided into their four groups for further discussion and to agree on their position on whether to grant the determination for an exemption from the requirement for collective worship to be “wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character”. 

The groups voted unanimously to refuse the application.

Resolved:

That SACRE refuse the application for an exemption from the requirement for collective worship to be of a “wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character” in respect of Poulner Infant School.