Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill passes second reading

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill passed its second reading yesterday, a key stage in of the bill’s passage into legislation. Overall, Humanists UK supports the bill, in particular the excellent measures including a Children Not in School Register and legislation to close loopholes that enable the continued operation of illegal faith schools. It has welcomed this important step in the legislative process.

However, Humanists UK is deeply concerned about oversights in the Bill that, taken together, would remove the so-called ‘50% cap’ on faith school admissions first implemented by Labour in 2007 to improve integration in schools.

Measures to close illegal faith schools supported

The need to keep children and young people safe and legislate to close illegal faith schools was raised by MPs, with Humanists UK’s decade-long campaigning in this area getting mentioned in Parliament. Lizzi Collinge MP, a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group (APPHG), welcomed the Bill and the measures it will take to ‘stop vulnerable children from falling through the cracks’:

‘The introduction of a register for children not in school will ensure greater safeguards, particularly for those who may be at risk of exploitation or neglect. It is vital that every child has access to safe, high-quality education regardless of where that is given.

I also welcome measures to crack down on illegal schools, where unfortunately we have seen many serious cases of abuse, including sexual abuse. Measures in the Bill will protect children from both poor schooling and the use of illegal schools to terrorise children. I put on record my thanks to Humanists UK, which has led a campaign for over a decade to crack down on illegal schools and has shone a light on some really horrific practices.’

Jo White, Labour MP for Bassetlaw, also spoke on the need for better oversight and regulation of home education to stop ‘extreme religious groups controlling children’s lives and welfare’. Speaking in support of a children not in school register Munira Wilson MP, the Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson, said it was ‘deeply concerning that there may be many thousands of children whose whereabouts are simply unknown.’

At the moment, home-educated children can be entirely invisible to authorities. Part of the Children’s Wellbeing Bill will introduce ‘Children Not in School Registers’. These will be managed by local authorities and will close one loophole used by proprietors of illegal schools, who claim they are merely providing supplementary religious instruction to children otherwise educated at home. Measures to increase Ofsted’s powers to inspect ‘independent educational institutions’ are also included in the Bill which gives a clear statement that ‘the Chief Inspector may, without a warrant, enter any premises’ they deem necessary.

Concerns about 100% religiously selective schools

Concerns were raised about a possible expansion of state-funded faith schools and faith-based admissions processes as a possible unintended consequence of the Bill. Concluding her speech, Lizzi Collinge said:

‘I want to put forward a personal view on faith selection in schools: it should have no place in state-funded education. It is social selection by proxy and, at the very least, I would like to see a firm commitment to keeping the 50% cap on all schools.’

Clause 51 of the Bill will remove the presumption that new schools should be free schools and allow proposals for other types of school including Voluntary Aided (VA) ones. Voluntary Aided schools can determine their own admissions, and discriminate against all pupils on religious grounds if oversubscribed. This would circumvent the ‘50% cap’ which has been applied to all new religious academies and free schools since 2007 and has been a crucial safeguard in making sure that faith schools do not exclude all children who live locally whose families do not share the same beliefs. Humanists UK has raised concerns about this clause with MPs and how, if not amended, it would pave the way for a new generation of 100% religiously selective schools.

Commenting on the passing of the Bill’s second reading, Humanists UK’s Education Campaigns Manager Lewis Young said:

‘The passing of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill at second reading is a great step forward to bring forward important and much overdue reforms to close illegal faith schools and keep young people safe. Thank you to all of those MPs who spoke on the need for these regulations at the debate.

‘However, we are deeply concerned about the possible unintended consequences of the Bill’s clause that will allow new 100% religiously selective schools to open. This contradicts the other aims of the Bill which are to make sure children have access to good local school places, and undo the good work of the 50% cap which has improved integration. We think the 50% cap should be applied to all new schools in the future, as it has been in the recent past.’