US EditionReligious education in NI schools breaches human rights, Supreme Court rules
The Supreme Court found religious education in Northern Ireland schools indoctrinates students and that withdrawal rules cause stigma, violating children's rights, the court said.
- In a unanimous judgment the UK Supreme Court allowed the appeal by JR87 and G, ruling Christian religious education in Northern Ireland state-funded schools unlawful and reinstating an earlier finding.
- After a 2022 High Court ruling that RE and collective worship were not objective, the Northern Ireland Department of Education appealed to the Court of Appeal, which overturned the decision, prompting JR87 and G to take the case to the Supreme Court.
- The judgment concluded that teaching the core syllabus at JR87's school amounted to evangelism or proselytising and that the Department of Education failed to monitor religious education for human-rights compliance.
- The judgment says withdrawal can be stigmatising as the court found reasonable apprehension of stigma sufficient, while Phoenix Law called it a `watershed moment` and urged urgent reform; the Department of Education has been contacted for comment.
- The court confirmed broader rights and obligations when it affirmed all children deserve education respecting freedom of thought, conscience and religion, rejecting withdrawal as justification and urging governments in England, Scotland and Wales to revisit collective worship rules.
34 Articles
34 Articles
Christian Religious Education Ruled “Unlawful” in Northern Ireland Schools · Caldron Pool
The UK Supreme Court has ruled that the Christian-based religious education (RE) and collective worship taught in Northern Ireland’s state-controlled primary schools breaches human rights law. In a unanimous judgment, the court upheld an appeal brought by an unnamed father and his daughter, reinstating a 2022 Belfast High Court decision that had previously been overturned by the Department of Education (DE). The case involved a pupil at a state-…
UK Supreme Court Calls Christian Education 'Indoctrination'
The UK Supreme Court ruled that Northern Ireland’s religious education requirement does not comply with human rights standards. The judgment was made after a father and daughter challenged how religious education was being taught. The family became concerned after their daughter, named JR87 in the case, prayed before a meal at home. “His concern is that his daughter is learning Christianity and not learning ‘about’ Christianity in a school conte…
British Supreme Court declares that Northern Ireland religious education is a form of illegal indoctrination
In a landmark ruling, a judge at the Supreme Court in London has ruled against how religion is currently taught and practiced in Northern Ireland schools, a decision that will likely prompt a major shift in the curriculum. The matter relates to participants who the ruling describes as: …a young girl, anonymised as JR87, and her father, anonymised as G… They argued that the: …Christian religious education given and collective worship provided in …
Religious education in Northern Ireland breaches human rights: court
Read: 2 min The U.K. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that how Christian religious education is provided in Northern Ireland’s schools breaches human rights standards and is unlawful. The case, described as landmark, was brought by the parents of a child who attended a state-funded primary school in Belfast. Northern Ireland’s education system differs from that of the rest of the U.K. as it is still shaped by its sectarian past. Most pupils attend …
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 34% of the sources lean Left, 33% of the sources are Center, 33% of the sources lean Right
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
