The Education Reform(Northern Ireland) Order 1989

Religious education

Religious education

12.—(1) The religious education for which provision is required by Article 5(1)(a) to be included in the curriculum for—

(a) a special school, shall be religious education provided in accordance with regulations under Article 34 of the principal Order;

(b) any other grant-aided school, shall be religious education of the kind required by Article 21 of the principal Order.

(2) In Articles 21 and 22 of the principal Order for the word “instruction” wherever it occurs there shall be substituted the word “education”.

Core syllabus for religious education

13.—(1) Subject to paragraph (4), the Department may by order specify a core syllabus for the teaching of religious education in grant-aided schools, that is to say a syllabus which—

(a) sets out certain core matters, skills and processes which are to be included in the teaching of religious education to pupils in such schools, but does not prevent or restrict the inclusion of any other matter, skill or process in that teaching; and

(b) is such that the teaching in a controlled school (other than a controlled integrated school) of any of the matters, skills or processes set out in that syllabus would not contravene Article 21(2) of the principal Order.

(2) In Article 21 of the principal Order after paragraph (3) there shall be inserted—

“(3A) In a grant-aided school the religious education required by paragraph (1) shall include religious education in accordance with any core syllabus specified under Article 13(1) of the 1989 Order.”.

(3) In Article 34 of the principal Order for paragraph (2) there shall be substituted—

“(2) Regulations under paragraph (1) shall secure that every pupil attending a special school—

(a) shall, so far as is practicable, attend collective religious worship or be withdrawn from attendance at such worship in accordance with the wishes of his parent;

(b) shall receive religious education in accordance with any core syllabus specified under Article 13(1) of the 1989 Order, or be withdrawn from receiving such education in accordance with the wishes of his parent.”.

(4) The Department shall not specify a core syllabus under paragraph (1) unless a draft of that syllabus—

(a) was prepared by a group of persons (“the drafting group”) appearing to the Department to be persons having an interest in the teaching of religious education in grant-aided schools;

(b) was published, in accordance with directions given by the Department, together with a notice inviting representations to be made before a specified date not being less than four weeks from the date of publication;

(c) was revised, if necessary, by the drafting group, after considering all representations made in accordance with the notice mentioned in sub-paragraph (b); and

(d) was submitted to the Department by the drafting group together with—

(i) a report by that group on the nature of representations made in accordance with the notice mentioned in sub-paragraph (b) and on the extent to which, and the manner in which, account has been taken of those representations in the draft submitted to the Department; and

(ii) any other information which the Department may request.

(5) Paragraphs (1) and (4) apply with appropriate modifications to amendments to, or a revision of, an existing core syllabus.

(6) Paragraph (5) of Article 7 shall apply to an order under paragraph (1) as it applies to an order under paragraph (1) of Article 7.