Useful Documents
Here are a range of documents, advice and reports that SACRE members may find useful.
Primarily aimed at curriculum writers, this publication consists of a handbook, three exemplar frameworks, and accompanying resources. Useful for ASCs to consider when reviewing their local syllabus.
Following suggestions from our recently retired patron, Rt. Hon. Charles Clarke, we have drafted a letter for your SACRE to modify and send to your parliamentary candidates in the imminent election, should you so wish. The aim of this action is to impress upon those elected to become MPs, the importance of RE, both within the curriculum and in promoting community cohesion.
Ofsted published its Research Review series: religious education on 12th May 2021. Here is our initial response, written by NASACRE’s Executive Assistant, Paul Smalley.
A handy FAQ sheet, giving advice about the statutory position of Collective Worship in schools.
The Department of Education have affirmed (January 2024) their advice written in 2019 describing what SACREs can do if they discover a school is in breach of the legal requirement to provide pupils with their RE entitlement.
Article written by Dr Kathryn Wright CEO, Culham St Gabriel’s Trust
As part of their monitoring of RE in their LA, SACREs sometimes discover information that leads them to have grave concerns about RE provision in some schools. This useful paper explains how SACREs can use a complaints procedure to encourage schools to meet their statutory obligations.
The Commission on RE published its final report in September 2018. You can read an initial response from our Chair, Paul Smalley here.
The full response of the NASACRE Executive to the Commission on RE can be read here.
This short article summarises the background to and concerns about the right of parents to withdraw their children from Religious Education (RE) and collective worship in English Schools. It reports on the scale of the issue in one English Local Authority (LA) and suggests that it is not a widespread issue in the area of the survey. It recommends that the survey is replicated in other areas so that a national picture can begin to be built up
NASACRE Patron the Rt Hon Charles Clarke and Prof Linda Woodhead launched the revised version of their proposals at the House of Commons on Tuesday 17th July 2018.
In order for NASACRE to be able to represent the views of its member SACREs at a national level, including to the REC and other policymakers, it is important that we try to develop as full an understanding of the views of our members as possible. This is the reason for this quite lengthy research survey which was conducted by the NASACRE Chair, Paul Smalley during January – May 2017
Anonymised data from this survey is being discussed with the NASACRE Executive and being used to inform policymakers about the strengths, views and hopes of SACREs across the country. The first example of this is the evidence submitted by NASACRE to the REC Commission on Religious Education in June 2017, which you can read below.
It is also hoped that the results of this research will be published more widely in suitable journals to inform the wider RE community.
Evidence submitted on behalf of NASACRE to the Commission on RE by Paul Smalley
This report is the result of an inquiry carried out by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on RE.
This study has been developed by university researcher Mark Plater, in collaboration with NASACRE.
This policy pamphlet was launched at the House of Lords on 15th June. NASACRE has provided a briefing paper to support SACREs in discussing its implications.
From September to December 2014, NASACRE held an open consultation via its website. Of the 152 education authorities in England, each required to have a SACRE, 87 (57%) participated in the 22 question survey. The purpose of the survey was to see the current state and status of SACREs in England; Wales has its own national association.
Read the analysis of the 2014 NASACRE survey.
RE: The Truth Unmasked Final report
RE: The Truth Unmasked Summary report
This report is the result of an inquiry carried out by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on RE to investigate the supply of and support for teachers of religious education. The report draws on over 400 sources of evidence and concludes that there are some serious issues which need to be addressed if schools are to provide high quality religious education for every young person.
Advice often quotes The Non-Statutory Guidance for RE (January 2010 – ‘The Guidance’) which provides links to the legislation relating to religious education and SACREs and interpretation of that legislation.
Drawn up by an RE Council working group with representation from NATRE, AREIAC, NASACRE, this code aims to complement the GTCE’s general code for teachers. When that code was being drawn up, there was some concern about the implications of ‘demonstrating respect for diversity and promoting equality’ and whether that principle might ever come into conflict with a teacher’s sense of integrity in relation to his or her own beliefs. This proposed code for teachers of RE is designed to help reassure teachers of RE themselves as well as pupils, parents and colleagues that a professional approach to such issues can and will be observed.
This section of the Faith Trails in Lambeth site contains information about how to set up and organise Religious Education visits and Trails to provide compelling RE learning experiences.
Here you will find step by step suggestions of how to approach planning every part of an educational visit or faith trail to places of worship which can be personalised by teachers to their location and circumstances.
Contents:
1. Faith Trails and Visits – Guidelines for Teachers
2. Information for Hosts – generic
4. a) Feedback forms – pupils Faith Trails
b) Feedback forms – pupils Visits
5. Sacred Spaces – Learning Outside the Classroom (pdf. © Crown copyright 2008)
The Lambeth SACRE is grateful to the National Association of SACREs and the Westhill Trust for the project funding that enabled them to produce this material for use by Lambeth schools and others around the country.
Guidance for local-authority-maintained schools on providing a daily act of collective worship.