Agenda and minutes

Minutes of the meeting held on 9 February 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 9 February 2023 were signed as correct record subject to an amendment that Sandra Gill gave her apologies for absence.

Items which in the opinion of the Chair should be considered at the meeting as matters of urgency.

Notification of forthcoming session

Satish Kumar is to speak at Devon Faith and Belief Forum annual meeting on Thursday 6 July 6pm – 7.45pm at the Mint Methodist Church, Fore Street, Exeter.  The session is free of charge and open to all members of the public.  Booking available https://devonfaiths.org.uk/event/satish-kumar-ecology-and-spirituality/?instance_id=236

In 2021 a working party met to review the Devon SACRE constitution. The changes made were duly ratified by a full SACRE meeting (17/02/2022).

Since then we have been unable to get this constitution signed off officially by the Council.

Thanks to the work of the Democratic Services Department we now have a date set for this to be approved by Cabinet. We are therefore bringing it back to this meeting, with 2 minor alterations, to be fully accepted by SACRE.

It RECOMMENDED that:

1)    Devon SACRE agree the constitution

2)    Note that the constitution be put forward to Cabinet for approval at their July 2023 meeting.

The Committee noted and agreed the amendments to the constitution originally put before them on the 17 February 2022. 

Group C – additional representative to Group C to represent Multi Academy trusts (13 in total)

Group D – 7 representatives in total from Devon County Council.

Resolved:

1)    That Devon SACRE agree the changes to the constitution

2)    That the constitution be put forward to Cabinet for approval at their July 2023 meeting.

Warren Houghton replaces  Helena Hastie as Baha’i representative.

David Tollerton joins the group from Exeter University.

Spokespersons for the four groups are as follows:

Group A, Christian and other Religion and Belief Communities (with the exception of the Church of England) - Bill Becher;

Group B, The Church of England (Diocesan Board of Education) – Tatiana Wilson;

Group C, Teachers’ Associations – Belinda Twiggs;

Group D, The County Council - Councillor Dan Thomas

It is RECOMMENDED that this be NOTED.

It was noted that the following representatives have joined the Committee:

Warren Houghton (Group A - Baha’i)

David Tollerton (Group C - Exeter University)

Neomi Alam (attendance at meeting in visitor capacity)

The purpose of this report is to update SACRE members on the findings published in recent Ofsted reports, particularly where comments relate to Religious Education (RE), collective worship or Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development (SMSC) of pupils.

The report recommends that SACRE officers should contact a few specified schools to either congratulate them on their outstanding practice, or to offer curriculum support in specified areas.

It is RECOMMENDED that the report  be NOTED.

Members received an update on the findings published in the recent Ofsted reports.  It was considered that it would be useful that SACRE officers contact specific schools to either congratulate them on their outstanding practice or to offer curriculum support in specific areas.

The purpose of this report is to update SACRE members on the progress of the review of the Devon Agreed Syllabus. An Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC) has been set up to coordinate the process. The ASC has a similar structure to the main SACRE body, so requires at least one member from each Group (A-D). We are pleased to say that the Devon SACRE ASC has members from all required groups.

An initial meeting of the ASC met on 11^th May to discuss decisions made so far, and to guide the process forward. This meeting was quorate, with members from all 4 groups in attendance. This meeting was held in conjunction with members of Torbay SACRE. Notes from the meeting are appended to this report.

It is RECOMMENDED that this be NOTED.

It was noted that an ‘Agreed Syllabus conference (ASC) was to be convened following the last SACRE meeting to co-ordinate the process review.  The ASC met on the 11 May 2023, all groups were represented and made the  following conclusions:

·       Introduction of the new syllabus in Sept 2024

·       That there is a minimal shift from the current syllabus (which is valued by teachers)

·       That more ‘lesson-ready’ resources be made available

·       That units embody more diversity

·       That units reflect the local lived experience of people’s religious and non-religious worldviews

·       That units take a more fully worldviews approach

·       Launch events be planned for June 2024

·       That teachers be offered follow-up training

During general discussion, Members referred to more input on Humanism.  It was also suggested that this should be brought into the curriculum throughout primary years rather than at the end of KS2.  Keith Denby welcomed the support of SACRE members and commented that he visited many settings to discuss Humanism and considered that a number of students  were able to identify with it.

Other members made reference to teachers offering more depth to the subject and ‘how religion is captured’ in the teaching of the curriculum. It  was about the importance of marketing and  ensuring teachers felt confident in teaching the subject in an engaging manner.

Members noted the survey results 2023 where the vast majority of settings used the Devon and Torbay RE Syllabus and that advantage had been taken of the RE CPD offered by SACRE/the Diocese/LTLRE Hub groups/RE Today.

In response to key ways in which the syllabus could be improved, the survey showed the top 3 points were:

·       More lesson ready power point presentations

·       More detail on assessments

·       More materials on ‘how to’

It was anticipated that a draft document would be ready for the next SACRE meeting in November 2023 for consideration

The purpose of this report is to update SACRE members on the progress of the Learn, Teach, Lead RE (LTLRE) hub network.

An annual conference has been planned for October 2023, at the St Mellion Conference Centre. This conference is to be addressed by Lat Blaylock, RE Today. Bookings open in June.

Hub leaders training is planned for 7^th July 2023. Unfortunately training had to be cancelled in February, due to illness and lack of availability.

Many hubs have been meeting in person over the last year, with others continuing to offer their meetings virtually. The new SWIFT hub has been very successful.

We are pleased to announce that new hub leaders have recently been appointed in Exeter and Plymouth.

It is RECOMMENDED that this be NOTED.

·       The annual LTLRE conference is to be held at the St Mellion Conference Centre in October 2023. 

·       Hub Leaders training is planned for 7 July 2023

·       New hub leaders have been appointed in Exeter and Plymouth.

·       A recent survey showed that engagement with a local hub had given greater confidence in leading RE and Hub leaders were reported as approachable and supportive.

This update relates to the national updates for the Devon SACRE meeting (June 2023)

Introducing the RE Hubs project

https://www.re-hubs.uk/

Census data

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/religion/bulletins/religionenglandandwales/census2021

Bloom Review: Does Government do God?

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-needs-to-better-understand-faith-independent-review-claims

Anti-Hindi-hate report

Report - https://henryjacksonsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/HJS-Anti-Hindu-Hate-in-Schools-Briefing.pdf

Film - https://youtu.be/UxzhbGt_LOc

SACREs and the law

https://humanists.uk/2023/05/30/landmark-high-court-win-for-humanist-judge-rules-he-cannot-be-excluded-from-local-re-committee/

It is RECOMMENDED that the updates be NOTED.

During general discussion it was noted:

·       That a RE Hubs website had been recently been launched at https://www.re-hubs.uk

·       That the percentage of the population in England and Wales reporting ‘no religion’ had increased from 14.1million in 2011 to 22.2 million in 2021

·       That there are three types of ‘nones’ (those who state they have ‘no religion’

Ø  campaigning ‘nones’ are self-consciously atheistic and hostile to religion

Ø  tolerant ‘nones’ are broadly atheistic but accepting/ warm towards religion

Ø  spiritual ‘nones’ embrace a range of spiritual beliefs and practices

·       That recommendation 7 (chapter 3) of the Bloom Review states ‘Government should look again at why RE in schools has become the ‘Cinderella subject’ and should consider methods for improving the teaching of faith literacy and RE, with a view to cultivating a more inclusive society where people of all backgrounds are able to engage in debate about the different faiths and beliefs that shape society.

·       51% of parents of Hindu pupils surveyed report that their child had experienced anti-Hindu hate in schools, whilst fewer than 1% of schools with Indian pupils queried by FOI reported any anti-Hindu-related incidents in the last five years.

·       Humanist Steve Bowen had successfully challenged his local authority’s refusal to admit him to his local SACRE. It had been deemed unlawful for Kent County Council to refuse his membership.

The Adviser to Devon SACRE will give an update regarding the NASACRE conference.

It is RECOMMENDED that the update  be NOTED.

Keynote Address: The role of SACREs in the emerging educational landscape. 

Ed Pawson invited members of Devon SACRE to consider standing to be on the NASACRE executive.

The Adviser to Devon SACRE will give an update about seeking funding for schools.

It is RECOMMENDED that the update  be NOTED.

SACRE heard about an initiative suggesting that  schools make more use of the RE Quality mark criteria statements.

Devon SACRE aims:

·       To raise the standard of RE in schools

·       To encourage more schools to use the REQM standards criteria as a tool to develop their RE curriculum provision

·       To support schools in applying for the RE Quality Mark award

Funding suggestions were as follows:

·       To apply for trust funding to enable SACRE to jointly support schools in their application for REQM assessment (cost is £495)

·       to offer a financial support to 2 primary and 2 secondary schools in a year

·       to offer £250 per school (£125 from SACRE, £125 from Trust funding) the total cost to SACRE: £500 per year

The SACRE Adviser to report back to a future meeting about the quality mark.

The Adviser to Devon SACRE will give an update regarding the planning of  Holocaust Memorial Day 2024.

It is RECOMMENDED that the update  be NOTED.

The Holocaust Memorial Day theme for 2023 is Fragility of Freedom

The Adviser to Devon SACRE will give an update regarding training opportunities.

It is RECOMMENDED that the update  be NOTED.

Lorna Legg will attend the next SACRE meeting on the 15 November to explore Diversity in Devon Schools

Dates for future meetings to be held at 10.00am on the following dates

Wednesday 15 November 2023;

Tuesday 6 February 2024;

Thursday 20 June 2024;

Monday 4 November 2024

It is RECOMMENDED that the future meeting dates be NOTED.

Future meetings to be held on the following dates commencing at 10am

Wednesday 15 November  2023

Tuesday 6 February 2024

Thursday 20 June 2024

Monday 4 November 2024