Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education
Tuesday 23 October 2012 6.00 pm
1
ROYAL BOROUGH OF WINDSOR AND MAIDENHEAD
STANDING ADVISORY COUNCIL ON RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (SACRE)
STANDING ADVISORY COUNCIL ON RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (SACRE)
23 OCTOBER 2012
PRESENT: Michael Gammage (Chairman) (Baha’i Community of Maidenhead), Councillor Natasha Airey, Saghir Ahmed (Islamic Trust), Jasvinder Bhogal (Sikhism Representative), Louise Ceska (BASH Representative), Mary Christie (Roman Catholic Church Representative), Nick Lowe (Baptist Church) and Fiona Smith (NUT Representative).
Officers in attendance: Karen Butler, Jo Fageant and Karen Williams.
 | | ACTION |
| 1 | Appointment of Chairman and Vice Chairman | |
| As there were no representatives from Group B present, it was agreed that a Chairman would be appointed for the meeting only. The appointment of the Chairman and Vice Chairman for the municipal year would therefore take place at the next meeting in February 2013.
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| 2 | Apologies for Absence & Declarations of Interest | |
| Apologies for Absence were received from Hilary Harris (Judaism Representative) Joan Hicks (Church of England Representative) and Councillor Dee Quick. | |
| 3 | Minutes | |
| Members approved the minutes of the previous meeting held on 19 June 2012, subject to the following amendment:
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| 4 | Matters Arising | |
| None | |
| 5 | Membership Update | |
| Members discussed the various vacancies on the SACRE. It was noted that there were currently vacancies for representatives of Hinduism, the Methodist Church and two for the Church of England. In relation to Buddhism, it was suggest that an approach be made to Taplow Court. The outgoing Hinduism representative (Jagdish Varma) had provided contact details for a potential replacement .It was suggested that Councillor Hari Sharma, a member of the Maidenhead Hindu community, could be approached. Jo Fageant explained that the local authority had a legal responsibility to ensure any person appointed represented the group they claimed to represent. In practice, this was a difficult thing to do. Best practice was to approach a community organisation, however it was noted that not all faiths had organised structures. In this situation, individuals could be approached to identify suitable candidates. Karen Butler agreed to contact Councillor Sharma to ask for appropriate contact details for the Hindu community. It was noted that the Maidenhead Hindu Society met weekly at St Piran’s School. Members were provided with a copy of the SACRE constitution, with some suggested amendments but the clerk advised that the Royal Borough Constitution had been revised the previous year and a more up to date version of the SACRE Constitution was available. The clerk agreed to source the correct version and meet with Karen Butler and Jo Fageant to discuss suitable amendments. A revised version would then be brought to the next meeting for approval, before being proposed to the Full Council. Fiona Smith agreed to pass contact details for a potential Methodist representative to the Chairman. Councillor Mrs Airey commented that both Kings Church International in Windsor and Riverside Church in Maidenhead were Free Churches. The Chairman suggested that the Kings International church be approached as the membership of SACRE was currently very Maidenhead-oriented. Karen Butler stated that she would get in touch as she already had a contact at the church. Karen Butler commented that two teachers she had met at the syllabus launch day had indicated their interest in SACRE membership, but neither had since come forward. Fiona Smith stated that she knew one of the individuals and would therefore urge them to contact Karen butler. Jo Fageant agreed to address the issues of the two Church of England vacancies. SACRE noted that Mary Christie would be resigning from SACRE after ten years as the Roman Catholic representative. She would forward details of her replacement in due course. She commented that to encourage individuals to put themselves forward for membership, the role of SACRE needed to be better explained. Councillor Mrs Airey suggested an article be placed in a future edition of Around the Royal Borough. Karen Butler commented that continuity of clerking services would be of benefit to SACRE. The Democratic Services Team Leader highlighted that the Democratic Services team were currently one member down, although recruitment was well underway. Although she could not guarantee the same clerk for every meeting given workloads, this would be provided wherever possible. | Karen Butler Karen Williams/ Karen Butler / Jo Fageant Fiona Smith Karen Butler Fiona Smith Jo Fageant Mary Christie Karen Williams |
| 6 | Syllabus Launch and Training Day | |
| Members noted that the syllabus launch had been held on 3 October 2012. The day had brought together RE subject leaders from across the Borough and Slough and had provided a unique opportunity to network and discuss ideas. Jo Fageant had presented the key features of the new syllabus during the morning. This was followed by group work to discuss how the syllabus could be used to plan lessons. A number of interesting debates took place. Colleagues deliberately chose to work in groups with colleagues from other year groups, to gain a wider perspective. Councillor Mrs Quick had attended the morning and lunchtime sessions. Mary Christie commented that the day had provided opportunities for professional development. Fiona Smith commented that there had been good camaraderie on the day which had helped people break down barriers and make new contacts. Jo Fageant’s presentation had been accessible and relaxed. She thanked Jo Fageant and colleagues for arranging the day. Questions and discussions from the day had been typed up and sent to Jo Fageant. It was proposed that the twilight sessions over the next couple of terms would focus on the syllabus. The Chairman suggested that an event on similar lines should be arranged on an annual basis. Jo Fageant suggested that the presentation could focus on one religion each time, to be made by representatives of that community. Louise Ceska commented that she would speak to her Head of RE to gauge interest. Fiona Smith highlighted the need to notify potential attendees of the date well in advance of the summer holidays to ensure they could arrange to be excused from teaching. SACRE placed on record its thanks to Elaine ??? for her administrative work in relation to the syllabus launch. | |
| 7 | Budget Update | |
| Members received details of the latest budget position. It was noted that the costs of the Diocesan adviser covered the three meetings and work on the syllabus. The syllabus launch date had been delayed hence venue costs had risen. Slough would be recharged for their attendees, which would help to offset the costs. Three annual subscriptions had not yet been received. It was confirmed that the third network meeting would take place on 22 May 2013 at Reading International Solidarity Centre. | |
| 8 | National and Local RE News | |
| Members received details of various upcoming events:
· London and SE SACRE’s annual meeting on 6 November 2012. NASACRE was promoting regional conferences to build network links. · A statement from AREIAC on the status of Circular 1/94 in relation to collective worship. The sections on RE and SACREs had been superseded by non-statutory guidance. However, this did not apply to the sections on collective worship. This controversial section advised that attention should be given to the person of Jesus in collective worship, which was difficult in multi-cultural schools. The only change in legislation since 1988 on collective worship was to allow sixth formers to withdraw without the consent of their parents. · Interfaith Week 18-22 November 2012. The chairman highlighted that interfaith services had been arrange by WAMCF, to be held in the Methodist Church. Karen Butler agreed to include details in the Children’s Services Bulletin. It was noted that the invoice for membership of the NASACRE would be received imminently. A decision would need to be taken in relation to renewal Slough SACRE had met the previous day and agreed to make available some funding to support the work of Jo Fageant. Two diocesan course were on offer:
· April 2013 – an interactive course on the use of digital technology. Details had already been sent to all schools. Karen Butler agreed to send details to Mary Christie. | Karen Butler Karen Butler Karen Butler |
| 9 | Annual SACRE Report | |
| Members received that draft Annual Report. Jo Fageant explained that it had been produced in a different format to previous years given that following the demise of QCA no analysis would be undertaken on the reports. The clerk agreed to provide web links to the minutes and agenda for SACRE, and the terms of reference as detailed in the Borough Constitution. The membership section would be updated following the meeting between the clerk, Jo Fageant and Karen Butler as detailed in item 5. It was agreed that the final report should be circulated to all schools via the Children’s Services Bulletin. It was suggested that the final sentence of the penultimate paragraph on the Membership Update section be amended to read: ‘It was decided to recommend that the term of office should be four years.’ It was confirmed that the syllabus would be available both on First Class and the Royal Borough website. An interactive version for teachers was being developed. | Karen Williams Jo Fageant Karen Butler Jo Fageant |
| 10 | Where to from here? A discussion about future priorities and actions | |
| Members discussed the future focus on the group, now that the syllabus had been launched. It was agreed that the list of places of worship should be further developed to include wider details than simply contact names and numbers. Suggestions included what facilities or opportunities would be available, and also details of individuals who could visit schools to make presentations. Nick Lowe commented he would be happy to be a resource schools could visit. Jo Fageant agreed to compare the current list with that held by Elaine ??? and then circulate an updated list to SACRE members. Progress would be reviewed at the next meeting. A Joint SACRE meeting in the summer of 2013 was suggested. Although there had been some complaints about the location of previous joint meetings, it was noted that transport links were good. Jo Fageant was asked to discuss the idea of an annual event at the upcoming twilight sessions and provide feedback. | Jo Fageant |
| 11 | Dates of future meetings | |
| The future meeting dates were noted as follows:
Members placed on record their thanks to Mary Christie for her ten year’s service to SACRE. The meeting, which began at 6pm, ended at 7.38pm | |