The Designation of Schools having a Religious Character (England) (No 1) Order 2004

Statutory Instruments

2004 No. 1513

EDUCATION, ENGLAND

The Designation of Schools having a Religious Character (England) (No 1) Order 2004

Made

16th June 2004

In exercise of the powers conferred on the Secretary of State by sections 69(3) and (4) and 138(7) of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (1), and having followed the procedure specified in the Religious Character of Schools (Designation Procedure) Regulations 1998(2) the Secretary of State for Education and Skills hereby makes the following Order:

Citation and commencement

1.  This Order may be cited as the Designation of Schools having a Religious Character (England) (No 1) Order 2004.

Interpretation

2.  In this Order “the relevant religion or religious denomination” means the religion or religious denomination in accordance with whose tenets religious education is, or may be, required to be provided at the school in accordance with Schedule 19 to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (or, as the case may be, each such religion or religious denomination).

Designation of the schools

3.  The schools listed in the Schedule (all of which are voluntary schools or new schools that have temporary governing bodies and which we will be such when established) are hereby designated as schools having a religious character.

4.  The relevant religious denomination in relation to a school listed in column (1) of the Schedule is stated opposite thereto in column (3).

Shan Scott

A Divisional Manager in the

Department for Education and Skills

16th June 2004

Regulations 3 and 4

SCHEDULE 1 Schools having a religious character

(1) Name and Postcode of School	(2) Category of School	(3) Relevant Religion or Religious Denomination
Barnet
Pardes House Primary School N3 1SA	voluntary aided	Jewish
Barnsley
St Michael’s Catholic and CofE High School S71 2BD	voluntary aided	Roman Catholic/ Church of England
Bexley
St Augustines of Canterbury C of E VA Primary School DA17 5HP	voluntary aided	Church of England
Christ Church, Erith, CE VA Primary School DA8 3DG	voluntary aided	Church of England
Calderdale
Sowerby Village CE VC Primary School HX6 1HB	voluntary controlled	Church of England
Dorset
St Mary the Virgin CE VA Primary School SP8	voluntary aided	Church of England
Hackney
St Dominic’s RC Primary School E9 5SR	voluntary aided	Roman Catholic
Milton Keynes
Bow Brickhill CofE VA First School MK17 9JT	voluntary aided	Church of England
Christ the Sower Ecumenical Combined School MK4 3GB	voluntary aided	Church of England/ Methodist/ United Reform Church/ Baptist
Norfolk
Belton VC Primary School NR31 9PA	voluntary controlled	Church of England
Harleston CE VA Primary School IP20 9HG	voluntary aided	Church of England
Necton VA Primary School PE37 8HT	voluntary aided	Church of England
Northumberland
Cragside Church of England First School NE23 6EX	voluntary controlled	Church of England
Seaton Hirst Church of England Middle School NE63 9SA	voluntary controlled	Church of England
Redcar and Cleveland
St Margaret Clitherow’s Catholic Primary School TS6 6TA	voluntary aided	Roman Catholic
South Tyneside
Whitburn Church of England School SR6 7EX	voluntary aided	Church of England
Swindon
St Francis C of E Primary School SN25 1NR	voluntary aided	Church of England
Tower Hamlets
St Elizabeth RC Primary School E2 9JY	voluntary aided	Roman Catholic
Wandsworth
Gatton (VA) Primary School SW17 0EU	voluntary aided	Muslim

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order designates further voluntary schools in England which have a religious character in accordance with section 69(3) of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (“the Act”).

Designation as a school which has a religious character is relevant for a number of purposes under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (“the Act”), notably:

(a) as part of the mechanism for determining the form of religious education to be provided under Schedule 19 to the Act;

(b) as part of the mechanism for determining the form of collective worship to be provided under Schedule 20 to the Act;

(c) as part of the mechanism for determining school staffing matters under sections 58 to 60 of the Act;

(d) for the purposes of the determination of admission arrangements under section 89 of the Act having regard to the code of practice issued under section 84;

(e) for the purposes of the disposition of assets under paragraph of Schedule 3 to the Act, so that assets can be re-assigned for the benefit of schools of the same religion or religious denomination..

Designation by this Order is not of itself a means of acquiring a religious character or of changing religious character. Designation is the recognition certain attributes of the school or its governing body as described in the Religious Character of schools (Designation Procedure) Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/2535). Under the Act a school must first close if it is to acquire a religious character, if it does not, as a question of fact, have one already, or where it is to change its religious character.

In England, the religions in accordance with whose tenets religious education is, or may be, required to be provided at the school in accordance with Schedule 19 to the Act are currently the Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Sikh religions. The relevant religious denominations within Christianity are the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church, the Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church, the Free Church, the Congregational Church, the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Quakers.

Designation by this Order as a school with a religious character will not be accepted by the Secretary of State as conclusive evidence that an endowment has been held or used, wholly or partly, in connection with the provision at the school of religious education for the purposes of section 554(2) of the Education Act 1996. Section 554 enables appropriate authorities of any religious denomination or religion (but normally Church of England diocesan authorities) to make fresh provision for endowments held or used for the provision of religious education. This normally happens as a result of a school closing. In confirming eligibility for an order, the trust deeds and other supporting evidence would be considered.

A statement in the Order in relation to a school that the religious denomination in accordance with whose tenets religious education is, or may be, required to be provided at the school in accordance with schedule 19 to the Act, is Roman Catholic, does not determine whether or not the school is a Catholic school according to canon law.

(1)

1998 c. 31. By virtue of S.I. 1999/672 the powers conferred by these provisions are exercisable by the Secretary of State only in relation to England.

(2)

S.I. 1998/2535.