A religious multi-academy trust run by a Church of England Diocese has announced it will move to close the only school with no religious character that it sponsors.
Ten Mile Bank (primary) school in Norfolk was taken over by the Diocese of Ely Multi-Academy Trust (DEMAT) in January, and remains the only school of the 22 schools in the trust that is not a ‘faith’ school. The DEMAT confirmed that it was ‘looking at proposals for the future of Ten Mile Bank’, despite it being oversubscribed and receiving a ‘good’ grade from Ofsted after its most recent inspection.
Chairman of the parent’s campaign group opposed to closure, Ryan Coogan, said that parents had been told pupils could go to a nearby Church of England primary school, also run by the DEMAT.
An open meeting on the proposals will be held on Tuesday 22 November at Ten Mile Bank School, and will be followed by a one month consultation.
‘This is a religious organisation taking control of a school with no religious character and then, a few months later, moving to close the school and effectively force children to attend a “faith” school instead,’ said BHA Faith Schools Campaigner Jay Harman.
‘It illustrates how inappropriate it is for religious academy trusts to gain control over schools without a religious character. This is a point we made to the House of Commons Education Committee earlier this year as part of their inquiry into multi-academy trusts, and we will certainly be bringing this additional example to their attention’.
Notes
For further comment or information please contact BHA Faith Schools Campaigner Jay Harman on 0207 324 3078 or jay@humanists.uk.
Read the BHA’s news item ‘Exposed: religious organisations gain control over hundreds of state schools’: https://humanists.uk/2016/09/07/exposed-religious-organisations-gain-control-over-hundreds-of-state-schools/
Appearing in front of the Education Committee in September, BHA Chief Executive Andrew Copson expressed concern over the freedoms enjoyed by religious multi-academy trusts (MATs) to influence various aspects of school life in schools with no religious character. In addition to being able to appoint their own governors, religious MATs can change the ethos of such schools, religiously discriminate in their employment arrangements for senior staff, and influence the nature of collective worship, religious education, and sex and relationships education.
While schools with no religious character being controlled by religious MATs are a relatively new phenomenon, there are already over 350 examples of these arrangements, and evidence of problems arising is not hard to find. In 2010, for instance, Tudor Grange Academy entered into an affiliation agreement with a local church primary at the request of the diocese. The affiliation agreement included commitments by Tudor Grange to ‘seek to celebrate and acknowledge the importance of spirituality and faith to our school life’. It subsequently designated two religiously selective Church of England primaries as feeder schools, thereby effectively turning Tudor Grange into a religiously selective school.
Further in March 2014, Somerton Infant School in Somerset joined a religious MAT and subsequently closed and became the infant site of a nearby Church of England Academy. There is nothing in law to stop either of these situations from happening.
Read a fuller briefing from the BHA on mixed multi-academy trusts: https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016-08-30-Final-Briefing-on-mixed-MATs-oral-evidence.pdf
Read the BHA’s written evidence on multi-academy trusts submitted to the Education Committee: https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016-04-05-FINAL-BHA-response-Education-Committee-inquiry-on-Multi-Academy-Trusts.pdf
Watch British Humanist Association Chief Executive Andrew Copson’s evidence before the Education Select Committee (from 10.30 am): http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/226549c5-cf0a-48a8-a50e-f4bb75c4358d
See the full list of academies and their sponsors: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/open-academies-and-academy-projects-in-development
Read the BHA’s previous news item ‘Church of England diocese in “takeover” of primary schools with no religious character’: https://humanists.uk/2016/03/10/church-of-england-diocese-in-takeover-of-primary-schools-with-no-religious-character/
Read more about the BHA’s work on ‘faith’ schools: https://humanists.uk/campaigns/schools-and-education/faith-schools/
The British Humanist Association is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people who seek to live ethical and fulfilling lives on the basis of reason and humanity. It promotes a secular state and equal treatment in law and policy of everyone, regardless of religion or belief.