The Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE) met on Tuesday 25 June 2024. The meeting was inquorate due to a lack of representatives from Group C (Teachers' Associations), meaning that the election of a Chair and Vice-Chair was deferred. Discussions included a report back from the NASACRE AGM and Conference, and updates on local and national developments in Religious Education.

NASACRE AGM and Conference Report

Mary Abbott provided a report on the NASACRE Annual Conference and AGM, held on 20 May 2024, which focused on how SACREs can support high-quality Religious Education (RE) and Collective Worship. Positives highlighted included the publication of the Approach to RE Toolkit and the National Content Standard . However, concerns were raised about the lack of trainee RE teachers and insufficient subject knowledge among those currently teaching RE. The conference also featured presentations on the Culham St Gabriels's Westhill Awards, AREIAC's Young Ambassadors for RE project, and ideas for Activist SACREs .

Mary also attended workshops on Making your SACRE work for you, which offered numerous ideas for SACRE engagement, such as seeking feedback from School Councils, using traffic lights for development plans, visiting places of worship, and showcasing children's work. Harrow SACRE is already implementing several of these suggestions. Another workshop focused on RE Hubs, a website providing free resources and training for RE.

NASACRE Constitution and CIO Registration

Lisa Kassapian, Adviser to SACRE, explained that NASACRE's application to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) would streamline its operations, particularly in areas like staffing, banking, and conference organisation. This change is not expected to significantly impact local SACREs. NASACRE is holding an online consultation on this matter on 9 July.

NASACRE Self-Evaluation

Members reviewed sections of the NASACRE Self-Evaluation Toolkit. Group A discussed the effectiveness of the Locally Agreed Syllabus, identifying a need for systematic feedback collection through surveys or questionnaires, while deeming the quality of the syllabus itself as excellent . Group B focused on the improvement of Collective Worship, with progress noted in supporting pupil entitlement and responding to requests for determinations. Group D considered SACRE's contribution to community cohesion and the promotion of social and racial harmony, finding that the SACRE's membership reflects Harrow's diversity, understanding of the local area is established, and engagement with the community is strong, with a clear commitment to RE's role in fostering cohesion. SACRE's role within wider Local Authority (LA) initiatives on community cohesion was also rated as established to advanced, with SACRE seeking information from its Councillors. Lisa Kassapian will incorporate these reviews into the development plan.

Development Planning Meeting Report

David Cryer reported on the Chairs' group meeting held on 24 April 2024. The group uses the Self-Evaluation Toolkit to assess current activities and future needs. SACRE is actively involved in producing an annual report, handling determinations, reviewing national and local updates, managing membership and constitution, monitoring RE results, and overseeing collective worship and RE leaders' meetings. A key area for future development identified is the creation of a questionnaire for schools to gather pupil feedback, especially relevant now that Ofsted is inspecting RE. The Chairs' Group is scheduled to meet again on 25 September.

Local and National Updates

Local: The Harrow RE Subject Leaders' network group met on 19 June, discussing age-related expectations, moderation of work, and assessment strategies to improve attainment, with a noted need for further assessment training. Determinations for Norbury and Glebe Schools are due for renewal, with arrangements being made for visits and meetings to ensure the continued provision of suitable Collective Worship.

National: Several influential RE documents have been published, including the Religion and Worldviews Approach to RE Toolkit and the National Content Standard . Lisa Kassapian highlighted Ofsted's Deep and Meaningful report, which advocates for ambitious RE curricula that develop substantive knowledge, ways of knowing, and personal knowledge, with a focus on the complexity of religious and non-religious traditions and the development of manageable assessment methods.

News from Faith Groups relating to schools

RE Hubs were discussed as a valuable source of training and resources. Mercedes Afnan shared positive feedback on a training session that provided practical advice on hosting school visits and encouraging children's questions. Members were encouraged to inform Vivian Wright if they attend any training sessions.

Future Dates

The next SACRE dates for 2024-2025 are: Tuesday 8 October 2024 (moved from 18 September), Wednesday 4 December 2024, and Wednesday 5 March 2025. The time for the October meeting will revert to 7:30 pm, and Gill Ross is investigating the possibility of holding it at the Mosaic Centre or a school. The Chairs' Group will meet on Wednesday 25 September. A full-day training session on Understanding Christianity is scheduled for Wednesday 16 October 2024 at St John's CE School.

The meeting concluded with thanks to Mary Abbott for hosting the meeting at her church and to the vicar, Revd John Barker, for his introduction to All Saints Church.