The Christian Institute » Children, Schools and Families Bill

Govt drops home and sex ed plans

Sam Wylie — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 13:05:14 +0000

The Government has today bowed to pressure and withdrawn its highly controversial home education and sex education plans for England. It is believed the Conservative Party blocked the sex education plans. Both the Tories and the Lib Dems were opposed to the home education proposals. Under the proposals, sex education was to become a statutory [...]

Compulsory sex education ‘undermines’ free society

Sam Wylie — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 10:59:58 +0000

Imposing lessons about sex on kids as young as five is an attempt to wrest responsibility for bringing up children from parents, according to hundreds of head teachers and faith leaders. Read the letter in full Over 2,000 people have signed a letter to The Sunday Telegraph calling on Parliament to “decisively” oppose Government plans [...]

Tories: we’ll block home school plans

Sam Wylie — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:11:24 +0000

The Conservative Party yesterday vowed that it would halt the Government’s controversial plans to clamp down on home-schooling families. Michael Gove, the Shadow Children’s Secretary, promised home educators that the proposals, which have been described as “deeply sinister”, will never become law. Home-schooling parents yesterday expressed delight at the assurances. The Tories have the power [...]

‘Muddled’ sex education plans pass in Commons

Sam Wylie — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:56:24 +0000

The Government’s controversial sex education plans were forced through the Commons yesterday, but critics slammed a faith schools amendment as an “incoherent muddle”. Labour used its control of the chamber to rush the Children, Schools and Families Bill through, but the Tories and the Lib Dems opposed it as centralising and bureaucratic. Under the Bill, [...]

Choice threatened by Whitehall sex ed grab

Mike Judge — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:17:05 +0000

A Government plan to centralise control of sex education in Whitehall will threaten parental choice and may squeeze Christian teachers out of their jobs, a top lawyer says. John Bowers QC, a leading employment barrister, says the plans will shift control of sex education away from school governors, making it harder for parents to have [...]

Faith schools should not have sex lesson freedom

Roger Jordan — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:55:48 +0000

Humanists and the Lib Dems have both attacked a Government bid to protect the freedom of faith schools to teach sex education in keeping with their beliefs. Faith schools are at risk because the Government’s plans for sex education are so radical, but its attempt to offer reassurance has come under attack from all sides. [...]

Call to shrink parental choice over sex lessons

Roger Jordan — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:28:18 +0000

A parent’s right to decide whether their child is ready for sex education should be given to schools instead, a parliamentary committee says. Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights has been examining the Children, Schools and Families Bill, which contains the Government’s radical plans on sex education. Apart from the basic biology of reproduction, parents [...]

Home ed registration: ‘not a good use of public money’

Roger Jordan — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:30:36 +0000

Plans to force home-schooling families to register their children with local authorities are “not a good use of public money”, according to a member of the Local Government Association’s Children and Young People Board. Councillor David Simmonds made the admission to a Parliamentary Committee when challenged by Graham Stuart MP about the cost of implementing [...]

Govt: teach about ‘sexual development’ from seven

Sam Wylie — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:03:44 +0000

Children as young as seven should be taught about their “sexual development”, new Government guidance says. The guidance is designed as a document for schools in England to consult when drawing up their sex and relationships education (SRE) plans. However, if the new Children, Schools and Families Bill becomes law schools would be forced to [...]

Classes in parenting for 14s are ‘bonkers’

Roger Jordan — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 13:42:20 +0000

Parenting lessons for kids as young as 14 are “bonkers” and more sex education is “part of the problem – not part of the solution”, according to one newspaper commentator. Harry Phibbs of the Daily Mail was responding to plans by Children’s Secretary Ed Balls that school children should learn about parenting. Mr Balls thinks [...]

MPs criticise home education proposals

Roger Jordan — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 09:28:40 +0000

A cross-party group of MPs has criticised the Government’s clampdown on home education in a new report issued today by the Children, Schools and Families Committee. Committee chairman Barry Sheerman labelled Ed Balls’ approach to the issue as “too aggressive, too hard-nosed”. Under proposals revealed in the Children, Schools and Families Bill last month it [...]

Home schoolers protest over monitoring plans

Roger Jordan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:33:37 +0000

More than 120 petitions opposing the Government’s plans to clamp down on home schooling have been presented to Parliament by MPs from all three main parties. The proposals, which include giving Local Authorities the right to enter the homes of home-educating families, were unveiled last month in the Children, Schools and Families Bill. The petitions, [...]

Parents face criminal checks before teaching own children

richardd — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:10:17 +0000

Parents who educate their children at home should undergo criminal records checks, according to the Government’s education inspectors. Ofsted have told the Government that parents who home educate should be vetted by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) as part of the Government’s proposed registration process. The proposal has been attacked for taking ‘safety’ to an [...]

Cold comfort over home school inspection plans

richardd — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:42:35 +0000

In a change to Government plans, officials will not be able to insist on one-on-one interviews with home-schooled children. But parents who block interviews may find that their children are forced to attend school. Originally ministers had said they wanted to give officials an absolute right to interview home-schooled children without parents being present [...]

Queen’s Speech: Equality Bill, home ed and sex ed

Sam Wylie — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:40:45 +0000

The controversial Equality Bill and a new schools Bill with divisive plans for sex education and home schooling formed part of yesterday’s Queen’s Speech. The speech, which is prepared by the Government and delivered by the Queen, sets out the legislative agenda for the next session of Parliament. Equality Bill In the speech it was [...]

Parents lose sex ed opt-out for kids, 15

Jane Leung — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:07:47 +0000

Parents will lose the right to withdraw their children from sex education lessons when they turn 15, the Children’s Secretary announced yesterday. Should 15-year-olds be forced to have sex education? Listen to The Christian Institute’s Mike Judge debate the issue on BBC News Faith schools will be forced to teach pupils about contraception and homosexuality [...]