The British Humanist Association (BHA) has commented today on the Local Government Ombudsman’s ruling against a Church of England school, saying that the incident highlights the need for legislative change to end the right of faith schools to discriminate.
The Lady Margaret School in West Londonhas been fined for its selective admissions criteria, which weighted admissions in favour of more able children from more affluent homes.
Andrew Copson , BHA Education Officer said ‘These findings support our view that, where faith schools perform better than community schools in examinations, it is often because they are selective and not because, as some argue, there is some peculiar advantage in having a religious ethos.
The BHA continues to campaign against the proliferation of faith schools and for their assimilation into the mainstream, with non-selective admissions criteria on any grounds.
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For further comment or info rmation, please contact Andrew Copson on 020 7079 3584 or by email .
Read the BHA’s policy on faith schools and related educational issues here .