A welcome from Paul Goggins, Chair of Hertfordshire SACRE

What is SACRE and what does it do? The main duty of a SACRE (Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education) is to advise the local education authority on: matters of collective worship in community schools religious education given in accordance with the locally agreed syllabus for the subject.  (Although part of the basic curriculum, religious education is not part of the National Curriculum.  Each LA is required to provide a syllabus for religious education for use in its schools.)

How does Hertfordshire SACRE support RE in schools? Reviews and produces a new Agreed Syllabus every 5 years Commissioned and supported the production of the non-statutory Primary Scheme of Work Has developed and maintains the Faith Communities Directory Provides guidance on issues to do with RE and collective worship – recent publications include: Revised guidance on collective worship Updated guidance on the right of withdrawal Advice on the contribution of RE to community cohesion

Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus 2006-11 Sets out the legal requirements for the teaching of Religious Education in Hertfordshire Contains programmes of study for each of the Key Stages Takes the national non-statutory framework for RE as its starting point Has been developed by RE teachers and other RE professionals from within Hertfordshire Is unique to Hertfordshire Is statutory

How can we find the latest support materials and guidance from SACRE? All new guidance documents, and the SACRE annual report can be found in the RE section of the Hertfordshire Grid for Learning: http://www.thegrid.org.uk/learning/re/sacre/index.shtml

How well do you know the legal requirements for RE? = True = False

How well do you know the legal requirements for RE? In Community Schools and Foundation and Voluntary School without a religious character, RE must be provided in accordance with the Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus TRUE A teacher must teach RE if directed to do so by their headteacher FALSE A school may choose to adopt the Agreed Syllabus from another Local Authority if it suits their needs more appropriately

How well do you know the legal requirements for RE? Christianity must be taught in each year group FALSE It is the responsibility of the headteacher to secure adequate provision to meet the legal requirements for RE TRUE The requirement to teach RE does not apply to nursery or reception classes FALSE(ISH)

How well do you know the legal requirements for RE? In Foundation and Voluntary Controlled Schools with a religious character, the Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus must be used, unless the parents request denominational teaching TRUE It is the responsibility of each school to have a curriculum document for RE which, with the exception of VA schools, should be based on the Agreed Syllabus

What next? Enjoy today and use the expertise and experience of today’s presenters Please take the time to fill out your evaluation carefully – this will help inform the planning of future events and support Think carefully about how you are going to feedback from today to the rest of your staff – keeping the momentum going is vital!