Battle joined over place of faith in education
By Caroline Wyatt, BBC News:
Few topics are as fought over or hotly debated in England as education, not least in a week that saw the UK’s pupils score badly in literacy and numeracy compared with their international peers.
Throw religion and faith schools (both public and private) into the mix, a chief inspector of schools, Sir Michael Wilshaw, whose own personal faith is at the heart of what he does, and a prominent Christian as Education Secretary, in the form of Nicky Morgan, and perhaps it is little surprise secular and humanist campaigners find themselves at odds with the educational establishment.
About a third of schools in Britain have a religious character – but, of the population, according to the 2014 British Social Attitudes Survey:
- 49% (and more than 70% of 15- to 24-year-olds) have no religion at all
- 17% are Anglican
- 8% Catholic
- 17% other types of Christian
- 5% Muslim
- 3% other minority religions