The Ealing Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE) met to discuss statutory responsibilities, including collective worship in schools and the religious education syllabus. The council approved a determination for Hambrough Primary School, and discussed updates to the Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC). They also considered collaboration with Haringey Council on syllabus development.

Hambrough Primary School Determination

The SACRE members approved the determination for Hambrough Primary School, allowing it to modify the requirement for collective worship to be wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character. This determination is a renewal of a previous one.

Su Larson, SACRE member, visited the school on 5 June 2025 to assess its suitability for a determination. Hambrough Primary School is a two-form entry school in Southall with approximately 460 pupils. The school's pupil population reflects the local area's diversity, with 23% Muslim, 30% Sikh, 19% Hindu, and 26% Christian pupils.

The school has a well-planned programme of assemblies and daily reflection, detailed in their 'Reflection and Assembly Policy' and organised termly on their assembly schedule. Monday assemblies involve the whole school, focusing on a theme or topic for the week. Other assemblies include Celebrations Assemblies and Singing Assemblies. Class reflections, led by the class teacher, reinforce the weekly theme.

The headteacher plans the assembly and reflection programme in advance, selecting themes and topics that support the school's values of respect, tolerance, friendship, and honesty. The school invites visiting speakers and provides opportunities for pupils to lead assemblies.

During the visit, pupil voice was carried out with school council members from Years 2-6. Pupils spoke about the week's assembly on the Five Pillars of Islam and explained the importance of learning about other faiths. They described reflection times as 'calming' and providing 'peace', and spoke of the shared sense of community during assemblies.

The report noted that:

Given the religious diversity of the pupils in the school it is appropriate for Hambrough Primary to apply for a renewal of their determination.

The report recommended embedding class reflections more consistently across the school to ensure a daily time of reflection for all children.

The application pack included:

• The determination application form
• Governing board minutes from 25 March 2025
• Parental consultation details from 12 February 2025
• The school policy on collective worship/reflection
• Details of arrangements for collective worship/reflection each school day
• A summary list of acts of collective worship/reflection for the current and previous term

The school's policy states:

We are committed to promoting community cohesion, and by referring to 'reflection' rather than 'worship' it is not our intention to secularise the experience, but rather to make it fully inclusive.

Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC) Update

Jan McGuire, Religious Education Adviser, provided an update on the Agreed Syllabus Conference and sought agreement on the next steps in implementing the review.

The key points were:

• Progress on the suggested procedure and timetable for the review of the agreed syllabus.
• Achievements to date, including teacher engagement, the Farmington Scholarship Programme[^1], and scoping activities. [^1]: The Farmington Scholarships are offered to teachers from Horsenden primary school and Montpellier primary school, and allow them to undertake research at Oxford University for one or two years.
• A list of Ealing ASC members.
• A timeline for developing further materials, reviewing new materials, and approving the new syllabus.
• A proposal to revise and maintain the AMV website[^2]. [^2]: AMV stands for Awareness, Mystery, Value, and is the name of the current Haringey Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education.
• A summary of feedback from teachers and headteachers.

The SACRE were asked to consider a number of actions:

• Approve the outline and principles for the revised syllabus.
• Approve the scoping activities.
• Consider whether to approach Haringey SACRE to share documents and resources to prevent duplication of effort and reduce costs.

Jan McGuire presented a rationale for collaboration with Haringey SACRE, highlighting the similarities between the two boroughs' syllabuses and the potential for cost savings. She noted that both SACREs have agreed to a revision for 2024-6 and that Ealing could benefit from sharing resources with Haringey, such as the AMV website.

The report included a comparison of the Ealing and Haringey budgets for the ASC, with a proposed cost of £500 each for the AMV/Ealing Website.

The report also summarised feedback from teachers and headteachers, including the need for more specific training for individual religions, recommendations of stories/books for key stages 1 and 2, and clarification over access to NATRE materials.

Local and National Updates

Jan McGuire, Religious Education Adviser, provided local and national updates, including:

• The NASACRE conference on 19 May 2025, which Jan McGuire attended on behalf of Ealing.
• A recorded message from Lord Khan on social cohesion and the importance of RE.
• The RE Council's recently released National Content Standard for RE.
• The Curriculum and Assessment Review 2025 (AREIAC/NATRE).
• Ofsted's focus on the need for RE teachers and a deep and meaningful curriculum.
• Meetings with ministers and parliamentary groups to discuss the curriculum review and children's wellbeing.

The report encouraged SACRE members to write to their MPs to advocate for RE.