DfE abandons plan to scrap free school faith admissions cap

The government has abandoned a plan to abolish a rule capping the proportion of pupils oversubscribed free schools can select based on faith at 50 per cent.

The previous Conservative government consulted on the proposals last year. They also included a plan to remove the block on new faith special schools.

But an update posted by the Department for Education today states government “will not be moving forward with these proposals at this time and will continue to keep these policy areas under review”.

They said they had received 3,668 consultation responses. Sixty-six per cent “disagreed or strongly disagreed with both proposals”.  

DfE focusing on schools bill reforms

A spokesperson said for the department said: “Our focus is on introducing reforms through the children’s wellbeing and schools bill which is now underway. The changes introduced in the bill will remove barriers to opportunity and raise school standards.”

The cap had particularly hindered plans to open Catholic free schools because canon law prevents them from turning away pupils on the basis of their Catholic faith.

However, the government’s bill, if passed, would remove the presumption that new schools must be academies.

The DfE said this meant faith groups “will be able to put forward proposals in response to an invitation from the local authority where the authority thinks a new school should be established in their area.

“They will also be able to put forward proposals for a new voluntary or foundation school outside of the invitation process.”

Paul Barber, director of the Catholic Education Service, said: “We would like to thank the thousands of Catholic parents, teachers and leaders who contributed to the Department’s consultation — their support shows demand in parts of the country for new Catholic schools.”

He said the decision “does not alter the Catholic sector’s legal ability to open new schools”, and welcomed the government’s “continued commitment to the opening of new voluntary aided schools in its children’s wellbeing and schools bill. 

“The Catholic sector has a long history of opening VA schools to serve communities, which are only proposed where there is demand from local families.”