Supporter comments

Giving a platform to any religious organisation is seen by children as an endorsement of that belief, children think it is education instead of preaching, and their trust is being betrayed.

Raymond, from TUNBRIDGE WELLS

Religious, political brand, and ideological evangelism to impressionable children and young people is immoral and needs to be stopped in schools.

Cathy, from DERBY

Faith schools and evangelism in schools supported by general taxation are a most undesirable anachronism in our largely secular society.

Michael, from NORTH LONDON

Children should be exposed to ideas in a balanced and impartial way. They should be equipped with the capacity to evaluate evidence to decide for themselves what they believe. Evangelism and proselytism work in a diametrically opposite ways and they should have no place in schools.

John, from BIRMINGHAM

It is not appropriate to evangelise or proselytise in schools. Children should be taught about all religions and beliefs including nonreligious ones. Through a historical, cultural, and descriptive basis, not one where they are told that one of them is more valid than the others.

Yvonne, from OXFORD

If political parties sought unquestioned access to young children there would be an uproar, so why are the religious specially privileged?

Mike

A few years ago, my six-year-old daughter came home from her non-faith state school extremely upset because we were going to hell as we don't believe in God or go to church. Today my five-year-old came home from the same non-faith school, having been told God flooded the world and only saved those who believed. Everyone else drowned. He was upset, doesn't want to drown, so said amen when asked to, and has decided he'd better believe in God

Melanie, from PLYMOUTH

My four-year-old is coming home thinking her parents are bad people for not believing in god.

Shivani, from IPSWICH

I asked for my son to be taken out of religious instruction and assembly, after being shocked by the amount of Bible Club leaflets, including one called 'Child Evangelist', and visits by evangelist singers, as well as the endorsement of Bible study by the headmaster. I am shocked RE is only Christian sectarianism. A very depressing reflection of the local community but surely schools should be the guiding lights of tolerance and inclusiveness. My son regularly gets told by peers that he will go to hell. His teacher even sympathises when I told her my reasons for him not attending assembly when local preachers and evangelists are invited in by admitting that some content is 'quite scary, Most worrying of all is the trend of ministers teaching kids to mock evolution.

Judith, from BELFAST

School should be a place where children are safe from proselytising and having other people's beliefs forced on them. It's unethical to allow these organisations access to young impressionable children. Some of the methods of these groups amount to brainwashing or emotional abuse, they need to be kept out of schools.