Collective Worship
In 1988 the Conservative government under Margaret Thatcher introduced the Education Reform Act with a view to raising academic standards and quality of Religious Education and Collective Worship in schools in England. (There's no such thing as secular state school system in England). When John Major was Prime Minister, his government published statutory guidance for Religious Education and Collective Worship called Circular 1/94.
Here are key extracts from Circular 1/94:
The Education Reform Act 1988 sets out as the central aim for the school curriculum that it should promote the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils and of society, and prepare pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.
The Government is concerned that insufficient attention has been paid explicitly to the spiritual, moral and cultural aspects of pupils' development, and would encourage schools to address how the curriculum and other activities might best contribute to this crucial dimension of education.
Every attempt should be made to publicise the school's values to parents and the local community and to win support for them.
The Government has recently required schools to include in their prospectuses a statement of their ethos or shared values
Every school must by law provide religious education and daily collective worship for all its pupils, with the exception of those pupils who are withdrawn from these activities by their parents. It is a matter of deep concern that in many schools these activities do not take place with the frequency required or to the standard which pupils deserve. The Government's aim is therefore to improve the quality of the religious education curriculum for pupils in order to ensure that they have the best possible opportunity to develop through this area of the curriculum.
School governors, head teachers and local education authorities are expected by the Government to apply this legislation in full and in such a way as may lead to significant improvements to the quality of religious education and collective worship.
The Government also attaches great importance to the role of religious education and collective worship in helping to promote among pupils a clear set of personal values and beliefs. They have a role in promoting respect for and understanding of those with different beliefs and religious practices from their own, based on rigorous study of the different faiths. This country has a long tradition of religious freedom which should be preserved.
Responsibility to provide daily collective worship
All registered pupils attending a maintained school should take part in daily collective worship.
It is the head teacher's duty to secure this. The governing body or, for LEA-maintained schools, the governing body and the LEA, must also exercise their functions with a view to securing this.
Collective worship and assembly are distinct activities. Although they may take place as part of the same gathering, the difference between the two should be clear. Collective worship can, nevertheless, be related to the day to day life, aspirations and concerns of the school.
‘Taking part’ in collective worship implies more than simply passive attendance. It follows that an act of collective worship should be capable of eliciting a response from pupils, even though on a particular occasion some of the pupils may not feel able actively to identify with the act of worship.
The requirements described above (paragraphs 60-66), that collective worship should be wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character, should be appropriate for most pupils across the country. The 'determination' procedure, however, allows these requirements to be lifted in respect of some or all of the pupils in a school where they are inappropriate.
Articles, Downloads and Links
Collective Worship and Religious Observance in Schools: An Evaluation of Law and Policy in the UK
Collective Worship: The search for spirituality
Pressure on Tory politicians to keep quiet about not being religious
Statutory Daily Act of Collective Worship at Moseley School in 2008
Birmingham City Council and Mashuq Ally use Trojan Hoax to peddle Secular State School System
Secular State School System in Birmingham
Birmingham Head of School Effectiveness said Collective Worship at Moseley School was a joke
Unfortunately Birmingham City Council and failing schools like Moseley have been ignoring primary legislation and Circular 1/94, thereby giving rise to a perception amongst parents and communities served by the Council and schools, of Institutional Religious Discrimination.