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479151

registered interest
date	16/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2016 to Question 27469, what representations she has received on whether the admissions criteria employed by religiously selective schools are sufficiently clear for parents to be able to understand them; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Hall Green
tabling member printed	Mr Roger Godsiff
uin	31460
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2016 answer text <p>As part of our current review of the School Admissions Code, we are considering whether changes need to be made to address some of the issues highlighted by the Schools Adjudicator. The School Admissions Code requires that the oversubscription criteria of all state-funded schools, including schools with a religious character, are reasonable, clear, objective, and procedurally fair. Schools operating faith-admission arrangements must ensure that parents can easily understand how any faith-based criteria will be reasonably satisfied. Parents should be able to look at a set of arrangements and understand easily how places for that school will be allocated.</p><p> </p><p>If parents consider arrangements are unclear or unfair they can object to the Schools Adjudicator.</p><p> </p><p>Officials regularly meet with a range of stakeholders to discuss admissions policy.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 21/03/2016 16:09:07 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	304 label Biography information for Mr Roger Godsiff

458845

registered interest
date	09/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 8 March (HL6382), in how many religiously selective schools the Schools Adjudicator has found admission arrangements that do not comply with the Schools Admissions Code in each of the last three 12 month periods for which information is available; how those numbers compare with all schools for the same periods; and what recommendations the Chief Schools Adjudicator has made to the Department for Education about remedying breaches by religiously selective schools.
tabling member printed	Lord Warner
uin	HL6879
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/03/2016 answer text <p>The Department does not hold data about the outcome of objections considered by the Schools Adjudicator in this format.</p><p>The Chief Schools Adjudicator reports annually to the Secretary of State on fair access. We are giving careful consideration to the findings and recommendations of her report for 2014-15 as part of our current review of the School Admissions Code. This report is attached.</p><p>We will be conducting a full public consultation in due course.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 16/03/2016 13:08:53 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash attachment 1 file name HL6879 - Office-of-the-Schools-Adjudicator-annual-report-September-2014-to-August-2015.pdf title Schools Adjudicator Annual Report 2014-15
tabling member	1732 label Biography information for Lord Warner

458888

registered interest
date	09/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential benefits of extending the 50 per cent cap on religious selection in free schools to all state-funded schools in England.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	30443
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2016 answer text <p>The Government greatly values the long-standing contribution that existing church and faith schools play in our education system and have no plans to extend the 50% limit to these schools as they are already providing high quality places in their local areas.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 15/03/2016 13:36:48 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

458889

registered interest
date	09/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effect of religious selection on the availability of school places and the number of parents who are unable to get their children into their local school.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	30444
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2016 answer text <p>Faith schools form an important part of our diverse education system and provide places for the children of parents who wish their children to be educated within a religious context.</p><p> </p><p>Local authorities (LAs) are responsible for providing sufficient school places, as set out under section 14(1) of the 1996 Education Act. LAs organise their place planning on the basis of circumstances specific to their authority. LAs that have faith schools are expected to take into account any impact on local place planning as part of their strategy to provide sufficient school places.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 15/03/2016 17:21:55 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

458892

registered interest
date	09/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 29 February 2016 to Question 27309, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring religiously selective schools to prioritise looked-after and previously looked-after children without reference to religion in the upcoming consultation on the School Admissions Code.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	30415
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/03/2016 answer text <p>Admission authorities for schools with a religious character already have the discretion to prioritise all looked after and previously looked after children in their oversubscription criteria, regardless of their faith, and many schools do so.</p><p> </p><p>The Chief Schools Adjudicator reports annually to the Secretary of State on fair access. We are giving careful consideration to the findings of her report for 2014–2015 as part of our current review of the School Admissions Code. We will be conducting a full public consultation in due course.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 14/03/2016 15:19:47 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

458644

registered interest
date	08/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to limiting the proportion of places that schools can allocate using religious admissions criteria, in line with the cap that currently exists for free schools.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL6796
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/03/2016 answer text <p>The Government greatly values the contribution that existing church and faith schools play in our education system, including those of free schools, and we have no plans to change their admission arrangements since they are providing places for the communities they serve.</p><p> </p><p>Not all faith schools choose to allocate places by faith. It is for the admission authority of the school to decide whether or not to include faith-based priorities within their oversubscription criteria.</p><p> </p><p>When constructing faith-based oversubscription criteria, including deciding how membership or practice of the faith will be determined, admission authorities must have regard to the guidance of their relevant religious authority and their arrangements must comply with the statutory School Admissions Code.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 16/03/2016 13:07:52 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

454373

registered interest
date	23/02/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to enforce better compliance with the School Admissions Code among religiously selective schools in the light of the findings of the report <i>An Unholy Mess</i>, published by the Fair Admissions Campaign and the British Humanist Association last year.
tabling member printed	Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
uin	HL6331
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/03/2016 answer text <p>The Government is giving careful consideration to the report of the Office of the Schools Adjudicator as part of our current review of the School Admissions Code, in addition to other research and publications.</p><p>We will be conducting a full public consultation in due course and will give careful consideration to all the views expressed in that consultation.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash grouped question UIN HL6328 question first answered 08/03/2016 15:17:50 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	2024 label Biography information for Lord Hunt of Kings Heath

454424

registered interest
date	23/02/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 15 February (HL5803), what assessment they have made of the criticisms of the admissions practices of a significant number of religiously selective schools in the report by the Fair Admissions Campaign and the British Humanist Association; and what action they are taking to stop any such practices.
tabling member printed	Lord Warner
uin	HL6382
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/03/2016 answer text <p>Schools which are found by the Schools Adjudicator to have aspects of their admission arrangements which do not comply with the Schools Admissions Code are required to amend their arrangements to ensure they are compliant.</p><p>The Department carefully considers the recommendations of the Chief Schools Adjudicator, as well as feedback from parents and other members of the sector. Where we consider changes are necessary to make the admissions system work more effectively for parents, these will be subject to a full public consultation.</p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 08/03/2016 15:18:51 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	1732 label Biography information for Lord Warner

453712

registered interest
date	22/02/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the findings in the Chief Schools Adjudicator for England's 2015 Annual Report, published in December 2015, what assessment she has made of the effect of the level of the religious oversubscription criteria used by some schools on parents applying to such schools.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Hall Green
tabling member printed	Mr Roger Godsiff
uin	27603
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/03/2016 answer text <p>The Government will shortly consult on a package of changes to the School Admissions Code. These changes will respond to concerns from parents and to the findings within the Chief Adjudicator’s Annual Reports. These changes will include measures to improve fairness and transparency.</p><p> </p><p>Admission authorities for all state-funded schools, including schools with a religious character, are required to comply with the Code. This includes a requirement that ‘the practices and the criteria used to decide the allocation of school places are fair, clear and objective’.</p><p> </p><p>The Code is clear that parents have a right to object to a school’s admission policy. Where an objection is made and the adjudicator finds that the admission arrangements are unclear, or unfair, or that they otherwise fail to comply with the Code, the admission authority is required by law to change them. The deadline for objections is set many months in advance of the closing date for school applications. This ensures that any admission arrangements which breach the Code can be amended to comply before parents apply for a place.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 14/03/2016 15:57:38 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	304 label Biography information for Mr Roger Godsiff

453156

registered interest
date	19/02/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Faith Schools: Admissions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the recommendation in the Chief Schools Adjudicator for England's Annual Report, published in December 2015, that her Department should clarify what is expected in guidance produced by relevant religious authorities for schools which give priority on the grounds of religion in their admission arrangements.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Hall Green
tabling member printed	Mr Roger Godsiff
uin	27468
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/03/2016 answer text <p>Admission authorities for all state-funded schools, including schools with a religious character, are required to comply with the School Admissions Code. This includes a requirement that ‘parents should be able to look at a set of arrangements and understand easily how places for that school will be allocated’.</p><p>We support the right of schools with a religious designation to prioritise children of their faith. The code requires such schools, as a minimum, to prioritise looked after and previously looked after children of their faith ahead of other children. We have no plans to change this requirement.</p><p>The code can only be applied to bodies within the education sector. It cannot place requirements upon religious bodies. It does, however, require that when schools with a religious designation adopt admission criteria which prioritise children based on their faith, the schools must take account of religious activities as laid out by their religious authority.</p><p>Compliance with the code is enforced by the Schools Adjudicator. Where an objection is made and the adjudicator finds that the arrangements are unclear, unfair, or that they otherwise fail to comply with the code, the admission authority is required by law to change the policy.</p><p>The Government will shortly consult on a package of changes to the code which will both respond to the findings within the Chief Adjudicator’s Annual Reports and concerns raised by parents. That package will include measures to improve fairness and transparency.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 27466 27469 question first answered 14/03/2016 15:56:35 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	304 label Biography information for Mr Roger Godsiff