Ministers will press on with plans for religious education (RE) to form part of the new national curriculum for the first time after reaching a “consensus” with faith groups about what will be taught. But all schools including faith settings will retain their freedom to “build on the requirements” of the new national curriculum subject, and the content won’t be revealed until September. Although compulsory in all schools, RE currently sits outside the national curriculum, meaning decisions about what is taught are taken locally, leading to huge variation. The government last year accepted Becky Francis’s curriculum review’s call to bring RE into the national curriculum, but said at the time the sector had to “reach consensus on whether this is achievable”. Education secretary Bridget Phillipson has now announced that consensus has been reached among those “representing the full spectrum of religion in this country”. A consultation on the content of the new RE curriculum will now be launched in September. ‘A source of hope’ “Learning about the world’s great faiths and traditions teaches children not just about the world, but how to live alongside and tolerate one another within it,” said Phillipson Bridget Phillipson “In such fractured times, it should be a source of hope that those representing the full spectrum of religion in this county have reached consensus on the most fundamental of points: what our children should learn about the world’s faiths, communities and traditions.” Phillipson said representatives from “every major faith and a wide range of communities have come together to agree a shared vision”. She also thanked Vanessa Ogden, the former academy CEO turned senior civil servant, who led a taskforce on the issue. “With so much focus on what divides us – and race and religion so often at the heart of that division – equipping young people with the knowledge, understanding and values that religious education teaches could hardly be more important.” The DfE said including the subject in the national curriculum would set “requirements for the subject being taught, to ensure it is delivered to a high standard. “The government considers RE a vital subject that develops children’s knowledge of faiths, values and traditions – both in Britain and around the world – and fosters understanding between different communities.” Schools will be able to ‘build on’ requirements The government said that as part of the curriculum, “pupils will have the option to encounter a breadth of traditions and ways of life and studying some traditions”. Asked what it meant by pupils having the “option”, the DfE said: “All schools, both faith and secular schools, already have the freedom to build on the requirements of any national curriculum subject. Once RE becomes a subject within the national curriculum, the same principle will apply.” Pupils “will be taught about matters of importance to both organised traditions and individual ways of living, for example festivals, seasonal occasions and community events. “They will also study how knowledge of religious and non-religious perspectives and ways of life supports tolerance and respect for others. “As well as taking a national and global approach, pupils will be taught about belief and values in local contexts and how these are reflected in local areas, such as through practices, celebrations, the arts, buildings and service.” The government said representatives from the Church of England, Catholic Education Service, Board of Deputies of British Jews and Office of the Chief Rabbi, the Association of Muslim Schools, leaders of Hindu and Sikh schools and Humanists UK all contributed to the draft curriculum. Also involved were the Confederation of School Trusts (CST), the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) and National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT). Arrangements for church schools ‘preserved’ Paul Barber of the Catholic Education Service said he welcomed the proposal to “both include RE in the national curriculum while preserving long-standing arrangements for church schools which make up a third of the state sector”. Andy Wolfe, chair of the Church of England’s National Society for Education, added: “We fully support the government’s vision both for RE to become part of the national curriculum and also to ensure that the arrangements for church schools are fully preserved in order to continue to support their strong and embedded practice in the teaching and leadership of RE.” Andrew Copson, chief executive of Humanists UK, said: “This is a momentous step for inclusion. Young people deserve to learn about the full range of beliefs that shape the world around them. “Putting RE on the national curriculum would end the postcode lottery in provision, and including humanism would give every pupil a richer, more relevant, and more rounded education.”