Church schools came under fire from critics over its admissions procedures as the Government continued to debate whether to create more faith schools and to give schools greater control over admissions.
Both the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church, however, immediately hit back at calls from millionaire Sir Peter Lampl for faith schools to stop admitting pupils on grounds of religious belief, pointing to figures that revealed that their Church schools were in line with the national average intake of pupils from socially deprived backgrounds.
The Church of England has also released figures on the percentage of pupils in its schools who are eligible for free school meals (FSM) – an indicator of the social mix of a school - revealing that their numbers were similar to the national average.Church of England spokesman Steve Jenkins responded, however, by saying that the Church took more than simply FSM indicators into consideration to assess social mix in schools.
“On measures of ‘eligibility for free school meals’ and the proportion of the school population in Church of England schools that are from postcodes with high Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) scores, there is virtual equality between Church of England schools and other types of school," he said.
He added: “There are also almost identical proportions of learners with statements of special educational needs (SEN) in Church of England schools compared with all other comprehensive and non-selective schools.”
Canon Hall said: “We believe the schools are serving the communities in which they are set and, we have deliberately tried to expand our secondary provision in areas of economic and social deprivation.”
According to Canon Hall, around 30 – or two thirds - of the schools that have been opened since the Dearing Report identified the need for 100 new secondary schools are sited in areas of high deprivation.
He said: “The Church of England is strongly committed to improving its provision in socially deprived areas. In practice, we are taking action to that effect. Our schools are distinctively Christian and open and inclusive to all who seek such education.”
Tony Blair’s Education Bill continues to be debated by politicians in the UK despite a number of compromises already sought by Blair.
