Faith Leaders Hold 'Inclusive Meeting', Archbishop Resists New School Plan

Following plans for new faith schools in England to admit up to 25 per cent of pupils from other religions, Education Secretary Alan Johnson met with representatives from the UK's major religious groups on Monday for an "inclusion summit".

The aim of the meeting was to discuss the role faith schools can play in improving relations between the faiths.

At the summit, the Archbishop of Birmingham has expressed that the plans to introduce a quota for non-Christian pupils "must be resisted".

The most Rev Vincent Nichols described the plans as "insulting" and "divisive" and has urged the head teachers of Catholic schools to voice their fears.

Writing in The Telegraph newspaper, the Archbishop said coercive measures by the government would not win co-operation and branded them "ill-thought out, unworkable and contradictory of empirical evidence".

He said Catholic schools on average welcome 30 per cent of pupils from other faiths or none, and they were likely to have better academic records and less likely to encounter bullying or racism.

He added that the government appears to hold the view that, left to themselves, Catholic schools would be divisive.

"Since the evidence suggests the opposite, I can only assume that this view rises from muddled thinking or prejudice," he wrote.

He warned: "The introduction of 'admissions requirements' is a Trojan horse, bringing into Catholic schools those who may not only reject its central vision but soon seek to oppose it."

The government has said schools are in a position to prevent social division.

The Department for Education and Skills said the meeting had been productive and Mr Johnson had made it clear that the amendment would only apply to new faith schools.

The Church of England has said its new schools will admit up to 25 per cent of pupils from outside the faith, but said other religions should not be expected to offer the same commitment.

The amendment has met with opposition from Muslim, Jewish and Catholic leaders.

The Department for Education said it welcomed the steps faith groups have already taken to improve community cohesion and said they were talking to them about how to build on this.