Guidance for local authorities about membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs)

Guidance for local authorities about membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs)

Following a request from NATRE, the DFE have produced the guidance below which has now been sent to local authorities. It makes clear that, in relation to committee A, it is the Local Authority who select which groups can be represented on the local SACRE and on the Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC) and that this selection may include representatives from non-religious belief systems.

See DFE guidance below.

Guidance for local authorities about membership of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs)

This note provides information on a recent court ruling and shares the Department for Education’s (the Department) view that representatives from non-religious belief systems may be appointed to Group A of a SACRE and/or to an Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC).

Background

SACREs are established by local authorities, as required by legislation[1], and their membership must consist of the following groups:

·Group A: members that represent Christian denominations and other religions and their denominations who will appropriately reflect the principal religious traditions in the area;

·Group B: members that represent the Church of England;

·Group C: members that represent the teaching profession or other relevant associations that, in the opinion of the authority, ought to be represented; and

·Group D: members that represent the [local] authority.

The recent legal case of Bowen v Kent County Council[2] (more details in the Annex) clarified that applications for Group A membership from persons who represent holders of non-religious beliefs should be considered in the same way as applications from those who represent holders of religious beliefs.

In the Department’s view, the non-religious beliefs adhered to by the person to be appointed must be analogous to a religious belief. To be “analogous”, the non-religious beliefs must, in accordance with case law under the European Convention of Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998, attain the necessary level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion, and importance to attract protection under the Convention Rights. [3]

The final decision on appointment of persons to a SACRE or ASC is a matter for local authorities. This may include consideration of whether such a representative would help ensure that the relevant traditions and beliefs in the local authority’s area are appropriately reflected in Group A.

[1] Section 390(4)(a) of the Education Act 1996

2 www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2023/1261.html

3 This aligns with the policy in Wales, where a non-religious belief for the purposes of education is aligned with those philosophical beliefs that are protected following European Convention of Human Rights caselaw.