Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the negative impact new fully religiously selective voluntary-aided schools could have on employment opportunities for teachers without a religious faith.

New voluntary-aided (VA) schools will have the same freedoms as existing ones to include religious criteria in their recruitment of teaching staff.

Schools with a faith designation (this includes VA schools, free schools, and academy converters which were previously VA schools) are able to recruit 100% of their teaching staff on the basis of faith. Voluntary controlled schools can only recruit up to 20% of their teaching staff on the basis of faith.

The department does not collect data relating to the religious belief of school staff or the extent to which VA schools with a religious character use the freedoms they have to apply religious criteria when recruiting staff.