Supporter comments

"Parents are forced to send children to faith schools as there is effectively no choice due to lack of school places and/or the need to move to a new house and area to avoid them. A faith school should not be forced up on us."

"Having a daughter due to start school next year, there are few options other than faith schools locally."

My son will enter reception next year. We are an atheist family and he's already being discriminated against by local faith schools, he's not even four! How can the UK let this happen?

"Certain parts of Cheltenham are in the catchment area for just one non-religious school, with four religious schools nearby who select children based on the parent's availability to attend church on Sundays. How is this fair on anyone?"

"Parents attend church just to get them into their most convenient school, not because of their devotion to the religious orientation. We have a school five meters away from our house, but our son can't go there because we refuse to attend the local church. This should not be happening in today's society. Children should be able to make their own choice when they are able to make that choice."

I'm looking at moving to a village, but the only school is run by the C of E. I scroll across google maps and the next 2 villages in a row are also only C of E! Where are the options for a non-religious education?

I hate the fact that our local secondary school is a faith school. I have little choice but to send them there. The result is that they get evangelised to. It's awful but it's a choice between that or a horrible commute every day.

"I am an atheist raised by atheists, the only school in the village I lived in was C of E. I had to go participate in Christian rituals in a church several times a year, was regularly told off for not praying and was taught that Hindu and Muslim legends are "myths" whilst Noah's ark literally happened. Aside from the obvious issues of indoctrinating impressionable children and encouraging tribalism and exclusion, when state schools become faith schools, they actively impinge on the right of anyone who is in that catchment area but not of that faith to raise their children with their own beliefs."

My wife and I are strictly secular, when it was time to send my child to school in the rural West Midlands it was impossible to find a non-faith-based school in our area. He is constantly being educated to believe what the school want him to not being left to make his own, informed choice.

"I had never looked into the rules of faith schools and admissions before. Now that I am expecting a baby soon, I have searched locally - I am shocked to discover that unbiased education free from religious dogma is not an option."

"As a former parent and chair of governors of a faith school I have seen first-hand how a school that was good in so many ways could exclude members of the local community and discriminate in employment practices."

"My son has to go to a local RC school because of SENS needs - his timetable includes five periods of RE every two weeks. This is more than any other subject and is straight up evangelising. Education should be secular, faith schools severely limit the choice of pupils especially in areas like mine which is a grammar area."

I actually find it hard to believe that in this day and age discrimination on any means is allowed. In Liverpool, my 4 year old starts school next week and his options were drastically reduced because we refused to get him 'fake' christened, why should I pretend his is being raised in a faith just to get him a good education, education and religion have no place together. Our schools need to arrive in the current era of equal rights. It's actually quite shocking that my son will not be considered for a school because of a prejudice.

It's not fair that my child has to be exposed to religious dogma if they want a local education, or that they have to travel miles to a non-faith school if the faith school around the corner is allowed to discriminate on the grounds of faith. All education should be secular as this is the most inclusive form of education.

"We have taken the very hard decision to remove our children from our local but C of E school. The attempted indoctrination and divisive nature of the school became too much."

"Not being religious ourselves we think this school is completely inappropriate. We've been told we can withdraw our daughter from worship and RE but there's no alternative provision, and sitting outside a classroom feels like punishment. Why should our daughter be punished for not being religious?"

"People should have the right to send their children to a non-faith school. In many villages/areas this is not practically possible. Segregating children by religion cannot help society."

"It is appalling that in this day and age children continue to have religion forced upon them. A child should be allowed to make their own mind up when in possession of all the information and when they are able to fully assess their options. There are no non-faith schools where I live and consequently my children have to go to school in the neighbouring town."

My daughter cannot attend her nearest state funded school as she does not follow that religion. Even if she were to be given a place, she would feel excluded. Please make all state funded schools secular.