All posts tagged: statefunded

Lords raise alarm on 100% religious discrimination in all state-funded faith schools

Lords raise alarm on 100% religious discrimination in all state-funded faith schools

Published by Sam

Today in the House of Lords, Baroness Burt, Vice-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group, questioned the UK Government’s plans to remove the cap on faith school admissions in England. The move will allow all religious schools to discriminate for 100% of their places. Baroness Burt asked ‘what assessment it has made on the impact of removing the admissions cap on state-funded faith schools on community integration and cohesion.’ The response gave no indication that there had been any such assessment but reiterated the Government’s stance that faith schools are inclusive. Humanists UK reported last week that the Government has started a seven-week consultation on the proposed 50% cap removal, commenting that the plan was a backwards step that risks increasing division and inequality. Showing that position has cross-party support, former Conservative Education Secretary Lord Baker commented in the discussion today that ’It has never been Tory policy to advocate 100% religious schools’ – calling it ‘an absurd proposal that should not feature anywhere in the manifesto of the Conservative party’. Lord Storey, Liberal Democrat …

UK Government plans for 100% religious discrimination in new state-funded faith schools

UK Government plans for 100% religious discrimination in new state-funded faith schools

Published by Sam

The UK Government has proposed to allow new state-funded faith schools to base 100% of pupil admissions on religion. Humanists UK has condemned this move, and has called for an end to all discrimination in the state school system.  Humanists UK Chief Executive Andrew Copson said: ‘The proposal to allow 100% religious discrimination in new state faith schools will increase religious and racial segregation in our schools at a time when integration and cohesion has never been more important. ‘It will further disadvantage poorer families, non-religious families, and families of the “wrong” religion. Rather than expanding religious selection, a government that cared about cohesion would be seeking to create a single admissions system where all state schools are open to children from any background or belief.’ Commenting on the additional proposal to allow religious bodies to set up state special schools, Andrew Copson added: ‘It is particularly important that pupils with special educational needs have access to high quality and balanced education, including a balanced and comprehensive relationship education that is free of religious bias. …

Children in care ‘effectively disadvantaged’ by state-funded faith schools says Office of Schools Adjudicator

Children in care ‘effectively disadvantaged’ by state-funded faith schools says Office of Schools Adjudicator

Published by Sam

Vulnerable children in England are continuing to miss out on school places because of faith-based admissions, the Office of Schools Adjudicator (OSA) has said in its annual report. This is the fourth report of the OSA to highlight how ‘looked after’ and ‘previously looked after children’ (the formal term for children who are or were in care) are being disadvantaged by state-funded faith schools. Humanists UK, which has long campaigned for fair school admissions for all children regardless of background, has said these findings highlight the need for the UK Government to make fair admissions, regardless of faith, a legal requirement once and for all.  The OSA oversees the Schools Admissions Code and ensures compliance of it from English schools. Its recently released 2023 Annual Report states that local authorities ‘are still reporting that schools which have religious character in their area effectively disadvantage looked after children who are not of their faith of the school because of the combined effect of their faith-based oversubscription criteria and the local pattern of schooling.’ A 2021 report …

Texas says state-funded EV chargers must include Tesla plugs

Texas says state-funded EV chargers must include Tesla plugs

Published by skeptic

Texas will require electric vehicle charging companies to include Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) and the Combined Charging System (CCS) standard in order to qualify for a state program to electrify highways through federal funds, Reuters reports. “The decision by Ford, GM, and now Rivian to adopt NACS changed requirements for Phase 1. Each Direct Current Fast Charge port will be required to have 1 CCS connector and 1 NACS connector,” the Texas Department of Transportation said in an email to Reuters on Tuesday. Late last month, Ford sparked an EV charging standards war by choosing to build future EVs with Tesla’s NACS technology and charge ports. General Motors promptly announced its own adoption of Tesla’s charging standard, causing a domino effect, with Rivian following Tuesday and talks of Hyundai soon to come. A range of charging companies like FreeWire Technologies, Flo and EVgo, have also promised to include NACS connectors to their public charging stations. Tesla’s charging standard is considered to be a better user experience. The cables are smaller, lighter and easier …