The Government is undermining RE in our schools

It is now clear that current government policy is knowingly undermining Religious Education in our schools.

Not including GCSE RE as a mainstream humanities subject in the 2010 English Baccalaureate has already resulted in many schools simply not offering it as a GCSE choice.

Hard statistical evidence from the National Association of Teachers of RE showing this current and future decline was provided to the Secretary of State for consideration last week.

Excluding it yet again from this year’s EBacc imposes further serious collateral damage on RE, and will gravely weaken the subject at all levels in secondary schools.

The rigorous study of ethics, faiths and beliefs allows those selecting GCSE RE to develop strong written and verbal skills, as well as to gain a factual knowledge of the world we live in.

It is a travesty that as we face challenges of cohesion and a weakening of our collective identity, the very subject that can make sense of it all has been deemed less academically viable than Geography and History.

The Religious Education Council of England and Wales (REC) has always been willing to work constructively with the Education Secretary to achieve a good provision of RE in our schools.

We are now entering an uncertain time for both the subject and RE teachers. We will do our utmost to draw attention to RE’s continuing value and relevance. We look to the government to provide immediate evidence of its determination to ensure that the statutory requirements result in effective provision of good quality RE for all young people.




Brian Gates is Chair of the Religious Education Council of England and Wales