Sending children to Sunday school to get into good secondary

[wildawake]

What are your views on this?

I'm an atheist, I don't want it to be part of my children's life. However there are 2 very good schools in our town. To even have a chance of getting into either, they need to be seen to be attending church on a weekly basis.

I'm so conflicted. Makes me feel very uncomfortable, apparently they don't do much praying it's more crafts etc, but a register is taken which can be used when supporting school applications.

If it was up to me I wouldn't even be considering, however DH thinks I'm being very narrow minded, selfish, holding them back. They are excellent schools, both outstanding.

We were*

weary I agree that what you've said is the founding principle but most church schools have abandoned that principle a long time ago, and shame on them for doing so.

Here’s an email I’ve had home this morning from the ‘non-proselytising’ CofE school:

In church today we heard about the Easter story and also why we have certain foods at this time. During the service the children heard the following:

“You have been lucky to hear about the resurrection of Jesus today and we’d like you to share that Good news with someone else who isn’t here today. When you go home tonight you will be given two small eggs. One of them is for you to eat when you are at home. The other is for you to share with someone. We’d like you to tell them about some of the things that you have heard about today and then you can give them an egg to remind them that Jesus is alive.”

If the eggs have arrived home in one piece we would ask you to encourage your child to tell someone in the family, or a friend, about the service and to give them the second egg.

It’s mostly a lovely school (and before anyone asks no, it wasn’t our choice, it was this or a failing CofE school 40 minutes away) but I do roll my eyes at claims that CofE schools don’t push Christianity.

Eeek thats full on proselytizing

Doubt whether many of those second eggs will have made it home!

I think it’s bloody optimistic of them!

Frankly I’ve got first dibs if it does.

Update: no eggs came home. DS1 and his friend both ate their first egg, and then gave their second egg to each other, thus fulfilling the letter of the instruction but also both ending up with two eggs.

I’m quite proud.

Eh?

I’ve never attended an assembly at my son’s school (not my choice of school, but here we are) where they were offered an option to pray, or told it was not obligatory

That is the case at many non-faith schools. The law currently requires a daily assembly that must be broadly Christian in nature. Some faith schools don't pray in the daily assembly (and some don't hold a daily assembly at all). Some non-faith schools have a daily assembly including prayers.

Thanks prh47. I’m unsurprised by it - just surprised by the calm assertion by another poster that CofE schools don’t actively promote Christianity. As you say, given all schools are required to include daily broadly Christian worship.

I suspect posters feel that the fact that children could opt out means it’s optional - but it’s pretty meaningless in practice for little kids in particular unless the school spells out what’s optional and what’s compulsory.

I’m still annoyed I didn’t get my chocolate egg with the ‘good news’ thanks to DS’s pragmatism, though.