Curriculum and Assessment Review

Baroness Burt of Solihull Excerpts

Thursday 26th March 2026 Grand Committee

[Baroness Burt of Solihull (LD)]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Freyberg, on securing this debate. It is much needed. I agree with a lot of the comments that have been made so far. I want to go a little off-piste and talk about teaching about religion and belief in state schools, which, according to the courts, must be conveyed in a way that is objective, critical and pluralistic. That principle reflects the wider human rights framework governing education and has been reiterated over a number of years in domestic and European case law. In England, the High Court in Fox v Secretary of State for Education drew attention to the importance of ensuring that pupils receive a balanced understanding of the diversity of beliefs present in modern society, including non-religious world views such as humanism. The judgment highlighted concerns that such perspectives should not be treated as marginal or incidental but rather form a meaningful part of pupils’ education about religion and belief. More recently, the Supreme Court in Northern Ireland, in case JR87, reaffirmed that same principle, upholding the finding that elements of the religious education curriculum there were not sufficiently objective, critical and pluralistic because they effectively privileged particular religious perspectives. Importantly, the court also made it clear that the existence of a parental right of withdrawal cannot compensate for a curriculum that does not meet the required standard.

In the light of that developing case law, and given that the Curriculum and Assessment Review suggested that religious education may in due course be brought within the national curriculum, can the Minister say what assessment the Government have made of the implication of these judgments for religious education in England? What steps will they take to ensure that RE across the English school system is strengthened so that it reflects the full diversity of both religious and non-religious beliefs in contemporary England?