Every week we receive many requests for advice, information and support from parents or carers on a range of issues. Here we aim to deal with a few of the most common issues raised with us by parents and carers but if you do not find what you are looking for, please do contact us.
Education resources
For free downloadable education resources, including lesson plans, classroom activities, presentations, videos, and humanist perspectives on a range of topics discussed in school, see our website Understanding Humanism.
Many of our resources can support young people’s studying, but can also help with conversations around important questions: How can I be good to others?, How can I know what to believe?, How can I be happy?
New animation!
‘Life is like a piece of string. It has a beginning and an end. We don’t get much say about that. But we can make choices about the bit in between. We have the freedom to shape our own lives.’
Alice Roberts narrates this short animation about the humanist approach to life and the importance humanists place on freedom, responsibility, and connections.
Assemblies for All
Assemblies for All is a website designed to provide access to high quality, inclusive assemblies for schools across the UK so that every student can experience assemblies which are educational, enjoyable, and appropriate for young people from all backgrounds.
Humanists UK campaigns against collective worship in schools and instead argues for inclusive assemblies that are appropriate for all students. Please support more inclusive assemblies by letting your child’s school know about Assemblies for All.
Free online courses on humanism
We have two free online courses on humanism available if you’d like to learn more: Introducing humanism with Sandi Toksvig, and Humanist lives with Alice Roberts. The first course focuses on the nature of humanism and its response to life’s big questions, the other centres around the people who describe themselves as humanists and the way they live their lives. The courses can be taken in any order.
Recommended books
Check out our list of recommended books on humanism and recommend books for children. This includes several books that can support parents with bereaved children.
Other resources
Young Humanists e-booklet: Humanists UK’s 18 to 35 section have published a free e-booklet, ‘Does every question need an answer? A guide to open-ended questioning for parents’. – As every parent knows, children love to ask questions. This practical guide, written by school teacher Lian Montgomery and illustrated by Kathleen Chagall Design, helps you to respond to children’s enquiries about life’s big (and small) questions in an open-ended way. The booklet includes top tips and ideas on how to have open and honest conversations, and is laid out in an easy-to-digest format. So if you’re a parent, grandparent, guardian, educator or anyone else interested in helping children to think critically and creatively, download the guide today. The booklet is free to download.
Humanist families discuss family life: members of Humanists UK with families of their own answer a selection of the questions we often receive, showing a range of approaches to issues such as: “catching” religion;school worship and religious education; magic and fantasy; death and bereavement; introducing Humanism; marriage and relationships.
Education policy
For more information on our education policy, religious education, and collective worship, see our campaigns pages
How can parents or carers request a visit from a humanist school speaker for their child’s school?
We provide a free humanist speaker service for schools, colleges, or community groups. For more information about what school speakers do, click here.
If you would like one of our humanist school speakers to visit your child’s school, you should write to their headteacher to suggest that they request a visit from us. Click here for a template email that you can use, which explains why it is so important that young people have the opportunity to learn about humanism. If you do contact your child’s headteacher to suggest a visit, please tell us about it here.