- Alice Roberts, Stephen Fry, Lord Kenneth Baker, Becky Francis, Revd Richard Harries, and Alf Dubs are among 183 campaigners opposing proposals to open 100% religiously selective schools
- Letter urges Damian Hinds to stop opening segregated religious schools and instead let children from all religions and beliefs mix together in inclusive schools
- Letter organised by Humanists UK and the Accord Coalition comes as Catholic, Church of England, Muslim, Jewish, and Hindu groups apply to open new schools.
A group of high-profile campaigners including politicians, academics, religious leaders, and humanists have urged the Government to ban new state schools which can select 100% of pupils based on their religious beliefs, warning that segregating more pupils by faith would be a disaster for social cohesion.
Humanists UK and the Accord Coalition, which campaign for an inclusive education system with no religious discrimination, have organised the letter to the Secretary of State for Education Damian Hinds in response to the UK Government’s recent launch of a funding scheme for new voluntary aided schools in England. The letter appeared in today’s Sunday Times.
The letter, displayed below, is backed by supporters including Humanists UK President and faith schools campaigner Alice Roberts, Humanists UK patron Stephen Fry, former Secretary of State for Education Lord Kenneth Baker, leading social anthropologist Kate Fox, Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, and Neil Kinnock along with directors of groups including the Runnymede Trust, UCL Institute of Education, and British Muslims for Secular Democracy.
It highlights the Government’s ‘extremely concerning’ move to give funding for the first time in over a decade for new schools which can legally select 100% of their pupils on religious grounds.
Catholic, Church of England, Muslim, Jewish, and Hindu groups have already jumped on the new funding offer, with the Department for Education (DfE) last week publishing details of 14 proposed voluntary aided faith schools which have applied under the scheme. The DfE is currently considering the proposals.
The letter states: ‘Evidence shows that such schools separate pupils not just along religious but also ethnic and socio-economic lines. This fundamentally threatens social cohesion. Monocultural schools simply cannot reproduce the benefits that come from learning alongside others holding differing beliefs, all day, every day.’
Humanists UK and the Accord Coalition estimate that 16% of mainstream state school places – or 1.2 million in total – are subject to religious selection. This is more than the number of places at private, single-sex, and grammar schools, or places selected by ability or aptitude, combined.
In this context, both groups believe that opening more fully religiously selective schools would be hugely detrimental to various pupils who don’t share their local school’s religion and would struggle to get a place at the school.
Humanists UK president Alice Roberts said: ‘If we want cohesion and harmony in our society, we need to bring our children together – not separate and segregate them according to their parents’ religious beliefs or worldviews. And as most people with religious beliefs aren’t pushing for these selective schools – I don’t understand where the drive is coming from. It is such a backwards step.’
Humanists UK Chief Executive Andrew Copson said: ‘Faith schools separate pupils by religion, ethnicity and family income, which increases social disadvantage and divides communities. The children of non-religious parents are often specifically relegated in admissions policies and are more likely than others to miss out on a school spot than those of religions. But, fundamentally, faith schools force children from different backgrounds to be educated separately which is a disaster when we are trying to create more inclusive, tolerant communities.’
Revd Stephen Terry, Chair of the Accord Coalition for inclusive education said: ‘The only positive way forward is to move to an inclusive school system, where children and young people of all different backgrounds and beliefs can learn with and from each other. The Government must abandon its plans for these religiously selective schools and commit to schools that are open to all children irrespective of family background.’
Humanists UK has been running a campaign urging people to write to their MP to oppose 100% religiously selective voluntary aided schools.
The full letter and signatories is below.
‘We represent a diverse range of educational, religious, humanist, political, and academic stakeholders from across British society with differing views on the question of faith schools. But we are all in agreement that, whatever their character, state schools should be inclusive, diverse, and integrated not exclusive, monocultural, or segregated.
We are therefore extremely concerned that, despite acknowledging the importance of integration and inclusivity by abandoning a proposal to drop the 50% cap on religious admissions in free schools, the Government has instead decided to provide funding for new voluntary aided schools which will legally be able to select 100% of their pupils on religious grounds. The first applications are being considered at this very moment.
Evidence shows that such schools separate pupils not just along religious but also ethnic and socio-economic lines. This fundamentally threatens social cohesion. Monocultural schools simply cannot reproduce the benefits that come from learning alongside others holding differing beliefs, all day, every day.
Further, to be approved, the new schools are supposed to demonstrate they will ‘attract applications from all parts of the wider community’. But the requirement that such schools must be attractive to families outside of particular religious communities whilst simultaneously placing those families at the back of the queue for places is patently unfair.
We urge the Government to abandon its plans to create these schools and instead ask that all new schools are inclusive, open, and welcoming to all children irrespective of family background.’
The letter comes as a newly released report by the social mobility charity, the Sutton Trust, found that faith schools are the ‘most socially selective’ schools in England and Wales, and that they increase disadvantage for poorer pupils by under-representing the rates of disadvantage in their catchment areas.
Signatories:
- Professor Alice Roberts, President, Humanists UK
- Andrew Copson, Chief Executive, Humanists UK
- Revd Stephen Terry, Chair of the Accord Coalition for inclusive education
- The Rt Hon. the Lord Baker of Dorking CH, former Secretary of State for Education
- Professor Becky Francis, Director, UCL Institute of Education
- The Rt Revd. the Lord Harries of Pentregarth DD, former Bishop of Oxford
- Lord Alf Dubs
- Stephen Fry
- Professor Jim Al-Khalili
- Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, journalist, author and Chair of the British Muslims for Secular Democracy
- Adèle Anderson
- Professor Peter Atkins
- David Baddiel
- Julian Baggini
- Baroness Joan Bakewell, co-chair, All Party Parliamentary Humanist Group
- Christina Baron, member of General Synod (Bath & Wells)
- Simon Barrow, Director, Ekklesia
- Dr Richard Bartle
- Sian Berry AM, Green London Assembly Member and Co-Leader
- Professor Sir Geoffrey Bindman QC (Hon)
- Piers Bizony
- Professor Simon Blackburn
- Dr Susan Blackmore
- Baroness Tessa Blackstone
- Professor Sir Colin Blakemore FRS
- Sir David Blatherwick
- Sir Tom Blundell
- Baroness Burt
- Donald Cameron
- Professor Colin Campbell
- Professor Ted Cantle CBE, Chair of the iCoCo Foundation and national community cohesion and inter-cultural relations expert
- Peter Cave
- The Revd Jeremy Chadd , Vicar of St Chad, Sunderland
- Professor Matthew Clayton
- Sue Cook
- Tom Copley AM, Labour London Assembly Member
- Revd Roger Cornish (United Reformed Church)
- Dr Helena Cronin
- Helen Czerski
- Sir Richard Dalton
- Professor Richard Dawkins
- The Lord Desai
- Martin Doré, Chair, Socialist Educational Association
- Revd Marie Dove (Methodist)
- Warren Ellis
- Jonathan Emmett, children’s author
- Dylan Evans
- Stephen Evans, Chief Executive Officer of the National Secular Society
- Dr Maria Exall, Chair of the Trades Union Congress LGBT+ Committee
- Baroness Shreela Flather DL
- Kate Fox, social anthropologist and author
- Revd Canon Jane Fraser, Manager of the education charity Bodysense
- Professor Chris French
- Rt Hon Lord Garel-Jones
- The Rt Revd David Gillett, former Bishop of Bolton
- Professor Jonathan Glover
- Rabbi Dr David J Goldberg
- Sir Francis Graham-Smith
- Professor A C Grayling, philosopher and author
- Professor David Hand
- Baroness Angela Harris of Richmond DL
- Dr Evan Harris, evidenced-based policy and human rights campaigner
- Professor John Harris
- The Lord Harrison
- Tony Hawks
- Dr Alan Haworth
- Natalie Haynes
- Savi Hensman, writer on Christian social ethics and theology
- Symon Hill, Christian author
- Ruth Hilton, Chair, JAT
- Dr Theo Hobson, theologian
- Jon Holmes
- Martin Horwood, Lib Dem MP for Cheltenham 2005 -15
- Rt Hon Dr Kim Howells, former Education Minister (1997 to 1998 and 2004 to 2005)
- Lord Hughes of Woodside
- Sunny Hundal, journalist and editor
- Dr Julian Huppert
- Virginia Ironside
- Dr Michael Irwin
- Professor M. Saiful Islam
- Rabbi Dr. Margaret Jacobi
- Dr Christian Jessen
- Nigel Jones, Chair, Lib Dem Education Association, and Methodist Local Preacher
- Revd Richard Jones, Associate Minister, Hereford Diocese
- Professor Steve Jones
- The Lord Judd
- Dr Omar Khan, Director, Runnymede Trust
- Rt Hon Lord Kinnock of Bedwellty
- Stephen Kinnock, MP
- Revd Richard Kirker, former Chief Executive of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement
- The Rt Hon. the Lord Knight of Weymouth, Minister of State for Schools 2006-2009
- Hari Kunzru, novelist and journalist
- Laura Lacole
- Warren Lakin
- Paul Lamb
- Revd Peter Law-Jones (CofE)
- Revd Cannon Peter Leonard, Chair of OneBodyOneFaith, and Acting Dean and Canon Chancellor of Portsmouth Cathedral
- The Baroness Lister of Burtersett CBE
- Callum James Littlemore, Co-Chair of the Young Liberals
- Ken Loach
- Naomi Long MLA, Leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
- Dr Caroline Lucas MP, former Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales
- Sir Alasdair Macdonald, Chairperson, New Visions for Education Group
- Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate OBE
- Melian Mansfield, Chair, Campaign for State Education
- Eddie Marsan
- Professor Andrew Mason
- Baroness Massey of Darwin
- Lord Maxton
- Derek McAuley, Chief Officer, General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches
- Kerry McCarthy MP
- Revd Iain McDonald (United Reformed Church)
- Ian McEwan, author
- Tim McGarry
- Professor Patrick McKeown OBE
- The Reverend Andrew McMullon (CofE)
- Baroness Meacher
- Jonathan Meades
- Loic Menzies, Chief Executive of the Education and Youth ‘think and action-tank’ LKMco
- Fiona Millar, journalist and education campaigner
- Rabia Mirza, Director, British Muslims for Secular Democracy
- Manzoor Moghal, Chairman, Muslim Forum
- Fiyaz Mughal, Director of Faith Matters
- Diane Munday
- Professor the Baroness Murphy
- Alan Murray, All Faiths and None
- Issi Nash, Group Secretary to Rescue Our Schools
- Jane Nicklinson
- Professor Richard Norman
- Eunan O’Kane
- Lord O’Neill of Clackmannan
- Dr Farid Panjwani, Associate Professor in Religious Education and Director of the Centre for Research and Evaluation in Muslim Education (CREME)
- Carl Parsons, Professor of Social Inclusion Studies, University of Greenwich
- Sara Pascoe
- Christina Patterson
- Brian Pearce, former Chair of the Buddhist Council of Wales and Buddhist Chaplain to prisons in Wales
- Martin Pendergast, Centre for the Study of Christianity & Sexuality
- Sir Roger Penrose
- Professor Kate Pickett
- Chris Price
- Haras Rafiq, CEO, Quilliam International
- Viscount Ridley
- Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain MBE, President of the Accord Coalition for Inclusive Education
- The Rt Hon. the Lord Rooker
- Professor Steven Rose
- Nick Ross
- Revd Prof. Christopher Rowland, Dean Ireland’s Professor of the Exegesis of Holy Scripture Emeritus, University of Oxford
- Martin Rowson
- Michael Rubenstein
- The Rt Hon Sir Stephen Sedley
- Ariane Sherine
- Dr Simon Singh (MBE)
- Paul Sinha
- Professor Stephen Smartt
- Joan Smith
- Prof. Lord Smith of Clifton, academic and former Vice Chancellor
- The Lord Soley
- Professor Francesca Stavrakopoulou
- Revd Tim Stead (CofE)
- John Swallow, former President of the National Association of Head Teachers
- Professor Adam Swift
- Joy Swift MBE
- Professor Raymond Tallis
- Peter Tatchell
- The Lord Dick Taverne QC
- Baroness Taylor of Bolton
- Jamie Theakston
- Revd Robert Thompson (CofE)
- Baroness Glenys Thornton
- Sandi Toksvig
- Carole Tongue
- Polly Toynbee
- Anna Turley MP
- Lord Andrew Turnbull KCB CVO
- Stephen Volk
- Revd Prof. Keith Ward, Christ Church, Oxford
- Mike Watson, Labour Education Spokesperson, House of Lords
- Baroness Whitaker
- Revd Simon Wilson, Heacham, Norfolk (CofE)
- Revd Claire Wilson (CofE)
- Professor Richard Wiseman
- Lord Wood of Anfield
- Professor Michael Hand
NOTES:
For more information, contact Humanists UK press manager Casey-Ann Seaniger at casey@humanists.uk or phone 020 7324 3078.
For more information about our faith schools campaign work, visit https://humanists.uk/campaigns/schools-and-education/faith-schools/
At Humanists UK, we advance free thinking and promote humanism to create a tolerant society where rational thinking and kindness prevail. Our work brings non-religious people together to develop their own views, helping people be happier and more fulfilled in the one life we have. Through our ceremonies, education services, and community and campaigning work, we strive to create a fair and equal society for all.