Rule changes will make it easier for new faith schools to open
by Harry Phibbs, Christian Today:
There has been much excitement about the fact that, in the future, a few of the new free schools opening might have an element of selection by ability. This has been described as going back to “the grammar school system”. I suspect that even with some academies taking advantage of the new rules and some existing grammar schools expanding, the impact will be a modest (but welcome) increase in the diversity of schools available.
Less attention has been given to another easing of the selection rules. Thus far new free schools have only been allowed to take a maximum of 50 per cent of pupils on the basis of their faith. Thus for instance if you were to open a new Roman Catholic school, and it was oversubscribed, only half of the pupils could be admitted on the basis of their faith. Once that quota is full, it is a legal requirement to turn away Roman Catholic children for simply being Roman Catholic.
That is quite absurd. So a “free” school does not have freedom over admissions. A “faith” school is obliged to turn away children who follow its faith to make way for those who don’t. What meaning do these words have?
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