Got to love the ad hominem attacks on me above, I've always thought when you are lowered to criticising spelling on an internet forum then you are displaying the fact that you have no valid argument to make.
So, just as an aside, no one found issue with my spelling and grammar when I got my 1st at a prestigious Russell Group university ( ok it was long ago) and long before I came into teaching I worked as a journalist for more than one national newspaper. I don't always read back what I write on here, more stream of conciousness, so there are most likely errors and typos, but I certainly have nothing to prove to you.
"forcing children to take subjects that do not interest them and that they perceive will bring them no benefit". Have you met teenagers? Lots of them see no benefit in science, languages, even maths that is beyond simple addition, subtraction and multiplication. What you would find in most secondary schools is that behaviour problems are far higher in core subjects than they are in options.
We have looked at other models of how to deal with R.S ( as it is offically known), and neither the forcing everyone to do the full course, or the PSHE route seemed appropriate. We have gone down the route of everyone does R.S but only the short course unless you chose it as an option.
As stated previously the O.P's school have probably gone down the route of ensuring that each child will get the opportunity to get an EBACC, and by the sounds of it have them only studying 8/9 GCSEs which with the progress 8 measurement is going to become far more common. Neither of which we have chosen to do in my school btw as it doesn't meet the needs of all the students, but lots of schools have chosen to do straight EBACC subjects and limit their students to 8 GSCEs because of the new success criteria from the government.
I do get rattled with the constant calls on here for one child to have special provisions made for them because of what they "want" or because it doesn't suit them/their parents at that particular time, not what they need. In the schools I have been a member of the leadership team in (and yes there has been more than one) parents who shout about their child's "requirements" and think that we should hop to their orders are a continual thorn in our side. If your child has genuine needs we will of course provide for them, but not because little David has decided that he wants to have more options choices than everyone else. Especially when there are loads of extra curricular options for him to get the same standard of education.
If you really don't like the R.E thing, take it up with the government, the school will be doing their best with what they have.