July 23rd, 2021
The UK Government has used its powers to order the Northern Ireland Executive to commission abortion services. It made the move after some parties’ opposition in Stormont led to continued delay to the rollout of abortion services in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland Humanists welcomed the decision as vital progress for women’s rights. Abortion was decriminalised […]
July 22nd, 2021
An unprecedented coalition of over 220 organisations have spoken out against the UK Government’s new plans to reduce the scope of judicial review. They have together formed a coalition to defend human rights and judicial review from Government attack. The coalition, established by Humanists UK, is believed to be the largest human rights coalition in […]
July 21st, 2021
The Government has today published its plans to shake up judges’ powers and limit the public’s ability to challenge official decisions. The Judicial Review and Courts Bill has been introduced into Parliament. It aims to change the process of judicial review – a mechanism that allows citizens to legally challenge the Government’s decisions. Humanists UK […]
July 21st, 2021
Humanist members from across the House of Lords have today pressed the UK Government to say when it will close illegal religious schools. A number of such schools are operating in England by exploiting loopholes in the law. Humanists UK, which leads the national campaign for their closure, has welcomed the comments. It said the […]
July 21st, 2021
A private Muslim school has received a damning report from Ofsted after a book saying gay and lesbian people should be ‘put to death’ was found in the school library. Humanists UK has described the discovery as ‘deeply alarming’. It said the case demonstrates the urgent need for better regulation of private faith schools. Inspectors […]
July 19th, 2021
A new study into worldwide laws on assisted dying has found that more than 250 million people have gained the right to die since MPs last debated proposals on changing the law. The research, carried out by Humanists UK, has been launched in map form, the first ever map of its kind, and demonstrates how […]
July 16th, 2021
Mae Dyneiddwyr Cymru wedi dweud wrth Lywodraeth Cymru bod perygl y bydd y canllawiau newydd ar addysgu Crefydd, Gwerthoedd a Moeseg yn parhau i eithrio dyneiddiaeth. Cafodd Deddf Cwricwlwm ac Asesu (Cymru) gydsyniad brenhinol ym mis Ebrill. O dan y Ddeddf, mae’n rhaid i addysg Crefydd, Gwerthoedd a Moeseg – yr enw newydd ar gyfer […]
July 16th, 2021
New guidance on teaching Religion, Values, and Ethics (RVE) risks continuing to exclude humanism, Wales Humanists has told Welsh Government. The Curriculum and Assessment (Wales) Act received royal assent in April. Under the Act, RVE – the new name for religious education – must include teaching about ‘non-religious philosophical convictions’. The Act also says that […]
July 15th, 2021
Pippa Swan is a humanist pastoral carer in Northern Ireland and volunteer for the Non-Religious Pastoral Support Network. Pippa is the one of the first people to have ever provided care in a Northern Ireland prison, and is also the first person in Northern Ireland to study the MA in Existential and Humanist Pastoral Care. […]
July 12th, 2021
The Integrated Education Bill, introduced by Kellie Armstrong MLA, has passed its second stage in the Northern Ireland Assembly. This Bill, if passed into law, would mean that all new schools opened in Northern Ireland will by default integrate both Protestant and Catholic communities in staff, pupils, and governance structures. It was supported by a […]
July 9th, 2021
The Labour frontbench has called for immediate legal recognition of humanist marriages in England and Wales. It made the call following the legal recognition of outdoor civil marriages, but the failure to deliver any similar much-needed reform for humanists. On 1 July the UK Government changed the law to allow outdoor civil marriages until at […]
July 9th, 2021
A groundbreaking new practical introduction to non-religious pastoral care has been sent to over 1,300 hospitals, hospices, and prisons across the UK. The new book, Being There: Responses in Humanist Pastoral Care, is by Joanna Mutlow. It is an accessible introduction to non-religious pastoral support, rooted in her practical experience providing care to people through […]
