SUPPORTING RELIGIOUS EDUCATION IN YOUR LOCAL SCHOOLS

Does your church host school visits, or would you like to think about ways in which you could invite schools to your building?

Would you consider talking about your Christian faith in an RE lesson, either in school, or through a video link? These are practical ways in which Free Church people can help children and young people to understand what it is to be a Christian and, in particular, what it means to be a Free Church Christian.

A new initiative – RegionalREHubs – has been set up to support schools, teachers and others involved in delivering Religious Education as part of the school curriculum, and one of its first activities is to equip speakers and those who host visits with the necessarily knowledge and insight to do so in a way that is compatible with the needs of schools.

The RegionalREHubs initiative is supported by a range of organisations, including the Religious Education Council, of which the Free Churches Group is a member – and has been for nearly 50 years! A series of free online training events has been launched, and anyone who is interested is invited to register for one of these dates:

2022

Monday 12 December 9:30-11am

2023

Tuesday 24 January 4-5:30pm

Monday 20 February 6-7:30pm

Thursday 23 March 2-3:30pm

Tuesday 18 April 9:30-11am

Wednesday 17 May 11-12:30pm

Tuesday 20 June 10-11:30am

To book a date, email: marketing@regionalrehubs.co.uk

Attending one of these training sessions offers participants the opportunity to sign up to an agreed set of principles for working with schools, and to gain a RegionalREHubs kitemark, either for individuals as speakers, or for church buildings where tours are offered. A national register will be developed, and any enquiries that come through the Regional Hubs will be passed to an appropriate person or an appropriate church. Do consider joining a training session and ensuring that Free Church voices are heard!

You can find more information here.

Photo by Christi Marcheschi on Unsplash

Involved in teaching RE? Anti-racist RE resources at the start of the new academic year

Are you or someone you know involved in teaching Religious Education? If so, these anti-racist RE resources for teachers may be helpful as plans develop for teaching this coming year.

The Free Churches Group and Methodist Schools are delighted to be able to offer these resources free of charge to teachers. They have been written and developed by Lat Blaylock from RE Today Services, and a team of teacher-volunteers from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds has provided valuable contributions.

In our society it is no longer sufficient to be non-racist, but we need to be equipped to be anti-racist. Many members of the Free Churches Group are engaged in their own conversations about how to combat the inequalities in our society. These resources are a tangible expression of that concern and a contribution to engage with the issues in the public square. There are materials for teaching in both primary and secondary classes. You can download these materials here:

We are grateful to the Westhill Endowment for providing financial support, without which this project would not have been possible.

(cover photo courtesy of Naassom Azevedo at Unsplash)

Anti-racist RE resources and recording of recent panel discussion

As you may already know, in partnership with Methodist Schools, the Free Churches Group commissioned Lat Blaylock of RE Today to write and develop a dynamic and thought provoking range of RE resources - Anti-racist RE - which you can access for free HERE.

We are now delighted to share in full the 'Anti-Racist RE Panel' session

from Strictly RE @ Home 2021.

With thanks to our panellists Anthony Reddie, Alexandra Brown,

Saima Saleh & Sally Elton-Chalcraft.

You can watch a recording of the panel discussion here:

We are grateful to the Westhill Endowment for providing financial support which enabled us to develop these Anti-racist RE resources.

(cover photo courtesy of Alexis Brown at Unsplash)

RE teaching resources: The Reformation

If you are involved in teaching RE or leading children’s and youth groups at churches, you may find these resources interesting, as you plan for the new term: Reforming Christianity. 

There is a resource for Key Stages 2-4. These resources were commissioned by the Free Churches Group and The Methodist Church, sponsored by the Westhill Endowment and produced in association with RE Today Services.

These can be downloaded:

(photo courtesy of Carolyn V at Unsplash)

New anti-racist Religious Education resource for Teachers

Media Release
Thursday, 5th November 2020

New anti-racist Religious Education resource for Teachers

A new suite of free teaching materials to help teachers of Religious Education plan and provide learning around racism and prejudice has been launched by RE Today and the National Association of Teachers of RE (NATRE). The project was initiated by the Free Churches Group and Methodist Schools and funded by the Westhill Endowment.

The Anti-Racist resources, which are relevant to Religious Education in Key Stage 2 and 3, include units of work such as ‘What can be done to reduce racism? Can religion help?”, and “Racism: what can be done to reduce its harmful impact? What can religions do to play their part in a more just society?” as well as film and book reviews - from Malcolm X and Gandhi, to the Life of Pi, and The Windrush Betrayal. The concept of respect is also explored, with links made with art and British Values.

The material also covers topical issues such as the toppling of Colston’s statue in Bristol, and an interview with British rapper Stormzy in which he explores his personal beliefs and spirituality.

One of the core guides is ‘20+ key ideas for teachers of RE’, a glossary of concepts that teachers need to be prepared to address, including community cohesion, cultural hegemony and a decolonised curriculum.

The resources have been developed with the support of over twenty-five project partners, including Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) teachers, pupils, academics, educational partners and a range of people from different faith and belief backgrounds. Some of them have recorded videos explaining why they are anti-racist.

Primary teacher Saima Saleh for example, says, “If we want to prepare our pupils for living happily in a diverse world, we have to challenge racism. It’s imperative that we tackle this subject in the classroom; racial disparities are everywhere. To improve the situation, change must begin by defining and understanding terms like racist and anti-racist in the classroom.

“As educators, we might feel uncomfortable addressing these issues, but it is so vital that we do if we’d like our world to be fairer for everyone.”

National RE Advisor for RE Today, Lat Blaylock, said: “Pupils are very conscious of the multitude of current issues surrounding race, from the Black Lives Matter movement to the concept of Cancel Culture. They often have their own distinct views on these issues and may even have encountered racism first-hand.
“It’s the role of teachers to help guide young people through this moral maze and make sense of many of the concepts and terms they come across every day. Often teachers are asked to tackle what can often be difficult and sensitive topics. That’s why these resources, which discuss the issues using cultural references that are familiar to pupils, are so vital.”

Barbara Easton, Head of Service, Methodist Schools, and Sarah Lane Cawte, Education Officer, Free Churches Group, said in a joint comment: “We’re delighted that RE Today/NATRE have worked with us to make these important resources available free of charge to teachers. Education has the power to transform the lives of individuals and communities, and we hope that these anti-racist RE resources are our contribution to building awareness and respect in young people in many schools.”

The free Anti-Racist RE materials are available here.

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Notes to editors:
Media enquiries:
Colin Hallmark / Sarah Carter, 3:nine Sarah Lane Cawte, Free Churches Group
Tel: 0207 736 1888 Tel: 0203 651 8339
Email: retoday@3nine.co.uk Email: sarah.lane.cawte@freechurches.org.uk

About the resources
The Anti-Racist RE project has been developed in partnership with the Free Churches Group and Methodist Schools and funded by the Westhill Endowment. It was managed, written, and edited by Lat Blaylock, RE Advisor for RE Today and Editor of REtoday Magazine.

RE Today
RE Today works in the UK and internationally to give children a broad and balanced education to support them in the world they live in, through the teaching of high-quality RE in schools.

It supports teachers in ALL types of schools through publishing high-quality RE publications, offering consultancy services, curriculum development and by providing professional development opportunities for RE professionals. Please visit the website here.

National Association of Teachers of RE

NATRE is the subject teacher association for RE professionals in primary and secondary schools and higher education, providing a representative voice at national level and publications and courses to promote professional development. NATRE’s Executive consists of a majority of serving teachers from primary and secondary schools who are elected for a three-year term of service. Please visit the website here.

RE Today Services

RE Today Services works in the UK and internationally to give children a broad and balanced education to support them in the world they live in, through the teaching of high-quality RE in schools.
It supports teachers in all types of schools; primary, secondary, first, middle, independent, academies, free, grammar, community, MATs, schools with a religious character and more.
It is committed to the teaching of the major world faiths and non-religious world-views in Religious Education, to an accurate and fair representation of their beliefs, values and practices in all of its teaching materials. Please visit the website here.