BIRMINGHAM - 27 October 2006 - 346 words
Archbishop
Nichols welcomes government decision to drop faith school proposal
Faith groups are welcoming the decision by the Secretary of State
for Education and Skills not to table an amendment to a bill which
would have meant that new faith schools would have to take 25
per cent of pupils from other religious backgrounds
In a statement last night Archbishop Vincent Nichols, Chairman
of the Catholic Education Service said: "I welcome the decision
by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills not to table
an amendment to the Education and Inspection Bill concerning the
planning of future faith schools.
I am grateful to Mr Alan Johnson for the attention he and his colleagues gave to the concerns of the Catholic community and for the discussions I held with him yesterday, 25 October.
In those discussions we came to a broad agreement about how future Catholic schools could be planned in ways that ensure that they always meet the needs of Catholic parents. This is of prime importance to Catholics and accepted by the Secretary of State. In addition further places can be planned for wider access to such new schools through consultation.
I am confident that these areas of agreement provide a basis for further discussion. I agree with Mr Johnson's decision that this matter does not require legislation.
I thank the very many members of the Catholic
community, schools, parents and others, who took the trouble of
writing to their Member of Parliament to make known their views
on the proposed amendment. I am grateful to those Members of both
Houses of Parliament for the action they have taken in this regard."
Yesterday Archbishop Nichols joined representatives of the Church
of England, the Jewish Board of Deputies, the Network of Sikh
Organisations, the Muslim Council of Britain and the Association
of Muslim Schools in a summit with Mr Johnson to discuss the proposed
amendment.
Canon John Hall, the Church of England's Chief Education Officer, said last night: "We are glad to note that the Government are not proposing to impose a legal requirement on all faith schools to set aside a proportion of places on the basis of local priority. The Bishop of Portsmouth wrote to the Secretary of State on 3rd October saying that faith groups could accept this voluntarily - as the Church of England had done - but that he did not want to see it imposed through legislation.
This will be seen as a watershed moment,
when public confidence in faith schools and their role in breaking
down walls within communities has been affirmed. We look forward
to the further growth of Church and other faith schools within
the maintained system."
Source: CCN/CoE Comms
© Independent Catholic
News 2006
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