‘Faith schools’ in England: The humanist critique

Abstract

Humanist organisations and individuals have been some of the most vocal critics of both new and existing state-funded ‘faith schools’ in England. This chapter explores the main criticisms of law and practice that have been made of selective admissions, of selective employment criteria, and of the curriculum and examine the source of these criticisms. These sources include human rights discourse, assumptions about the state and society, and humanist philosophies of education.