Faith-based school admissions should be ended, NSS tells UN

The NSS has told the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights that faith-based school admissions should be ended.

The Committee oversees the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, an international treaty ratified by the UK in 1976.

Article 13 of the Covenant enshrines the right to education, and states education shall "promote understanding, tolerance and friendship" amongst people of different racial and religious backgrounds.

It also requires that secondary education be "accessible to all by every appropriate means".

In 2016, the Committee recommended the UK government reduce "de facto discrimination and segregation of students based on their religion".

The NSS submitted evidence directly to the Committee and via a joint submission with JustFair, a UK human rights group that focusses on the Covenant.

A Government delegation will face questioning from the Committee on the UK's compliance with the Covenant next month in Geneva.

Admissions should not disadvantage those with 'wrong' religion or belief

In its submission, the NSS said families should not be disadvantaged when applying to state-funded schools because they hold the 'wrong' religion or belief.

It highlighted recent research which shows faith schools under-admit children from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, children in care, and children with special educational needs and disabilities.

The NSS said faith-based admissions "particularly disadvantage" children raised without religion or within a minority religion. It cited recent census results which showed Christianity is a minority religion in England and Wales, and most people in Scotland are nonreligious.

The submission also highlighted how faith schools segregate children along ethnic as well as religious lines.

Legal exemptions for faith-based admissions

Exemptions to the Equality Act allow faith schools to discriminate on the basis of faith in their admissions. In 2007, a 50% cap on faith based admissions was introduced for new faith-based academies.

Last year, the then Conservative government consulted on abolishing the 50% cap, following intense lobbying by religious groups including the Catholic Church

Labour have yet to formally set out their response to the consultation, although earlier this month the Department for Education said it was "highly unlikely" that new schools with 100% faith based admissions could meet local needs.

Earlier this month, the NSS urged Parliament to ensure the Government's Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill does not lead to a new wave of schools with 100% faith-based admissions.

In 2023, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended the Government end faith-based admissions in English schools.

NSS: 'State-funded schools should be open and welcoming to all'

National Secular Society human rights lead Alejandro Sanchez said: "Faith-based admissions are discriminatory, foster segregation, and are incompatible with the International Covenant.

"Two UN committees have recommended they be ended. The Government must now prioritise the needs of families above religious interests, and ensure state-funded schools are open and welcoming to all."