Current status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 13 November 2024
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recent commencement of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024, what it will do to ensure that the views of children and young people are considered when a parent or carer seeks to withdraw them from religious observance and religious education in schools.
Religious observance (RO), plays an important role in pupil’s education. However, there is also a longstanding parental right to withdraw a pupil from both RO and religious instruction or religious and moral education (RME).
As with any decision which affects children and young people, it is only right that their views should also be taken into account when this right to withdraw is being exercised. Doing so is in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and is especially relevant as pupils mature and take more responsibility for their own learning. However, while consideration of pupils’ views has long been a feature of our guidance on RO, this is not reflected in legislation.
The UNCRC (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024 builds upon a strong record on children’s rights in Scotland, but the commencement of the Act is merely a step on our journey to uphold and promote children’s rights. It is with this in mind that I am announcing that the Scottish Government will shortly be bringing forward a narrowly focussed Bill, with the purpose of amending the current legislation to require that pupils’ views are considered when parents or carers are exercising their right to withdraw their child from RO and RME. This will bring legislation into line with existing guidance as well as strengthening our commitment to upholding children’s rights in all aspects of their lives, including education.
These changes in no way diminish the significance of RO and RME in the work of schools, helping pupils to grow and develop their own sense of themselves, to be confident in expressing their own beliefs and values, and to develop an understanding of and empathy towards others. This approach will strengthen the rights of Scottish children and young people, which are a key priority of this government, but I am also conscious of the wide range of views on this issue and will discuss these issues with members across the chamber and with other interested parties.
As part of this, although the proposed changes on RO and RME merely bring legislation into line with existing guidance, a public consultation will launch tomorrow to seek views on any implications of these changes, as well as insights into how the right to withdraw currently works in practice to help inform implementation. The consultation can be found here: https://consult.gov.scot/education-reform/religious-observance-education-legislation-schools.