Starting C of E primary

[stellamylove]

My D, starting local school in Sept. It's quite holy, with daily prayers, a message board to god, hymns etc. As an atheist I'd rather she wasn't exposed to this kind if brainwashing, but I don't want to stigmatize her by asking she be excluded. Is there any mileage in canvassing other parents to see if they feel the same and trying to set up a group of kids who are spared it. Has anyone tried this?
Pleas don't suggest sending her to a different school. It's our nearest local village state school + all her mates from pre-school are going!

Many CoE schools are voluntary aided/controlled which may mean the building and land are owned by the church although maintained by the state.

GiddyPickle - again, the OP may not have had much of a "choice". In some areas, you have to travel a long way to find a primary that isn't a CofE.

I'm not even sure my son would have got a place at my nearest non-CofE primary, as we are way out of catchment.

Mito; this is the problem., I believe strongly in going to the local state funded school. I think it fosters a stronger sense of community and D will be at school with neighbours. I dont like the idea of people diving all over the place to find a particular school for their child's perceived special requirements. And I think the school, being state funded should cater for the belief backgrounds of its pupils, many of whom I'm sure aren't religious. The current system is anachronistic and needs to change

You really don't know what it's going to be like until your child starts - surely it's a bit premature to be making these plans? You visited the school before you applied I take it? And you didn't think it so awful that you won't send your child there? You need to chill, wait and see what happens and address any issues that you feel are really important IF they arise. Who knows - you may even be pleasantly surprised!

I have this issue.

I decided that I did not want to take the dcs out of the acts of worship and the trips to the church as I do not want to isolate them from their peers. However, when ds was asked to do a reading in church, I had more of a problem and made sure that the school were aware that we were atheists.

I have pondered a lot about what the correct approach to take is as I just cannot accept the position that says don't rock the boat, go along with it, it does no harm. The passive acceptance of religious dogma in our society has done a great deal of harm over the centuries. In the end I decided that I could change nothing at a school level, so I have been lobbying my MP for the abolition of state funded faith schools.

Interstingly where I live, the land that the school is built on has never been owned by the church and was recently purchased by the local authority. The school is relatively new as well and all of the building costs were (as far as I know) met by the LEA.

The MP clearly does not want to take up the issue so I got a polite non-committal reply. That's the problem really - closing state financed faith schools is not really going to play very well before a parliament that pays lip service to being CofE.

I think it depends on whether the school is voluntarily maintained or controlled by the church. The latter means that the financing is coming from the LEA and only the management from the church.

Pixie, I cant believe the C of E funds education in this country to any significant degree. Although I know it's very rich in property etc, it doesn't have spare cash for schools. It's always moaning about how impoverished it is and struggling to mend church roofs. The vast majority must come from taxpayers.
Even if it does significantly fund primary education (which I doubt) I find that a bit creepy. Like they're paying for access to young minds...
People understandably get suspicious when private finance, mcdonalds, tesco start funding schools in a much less controlling way but seem completely happy with the C of E.
Imagine the uproar if Tesco said they'd withdraw their schools program unless the pupils closed their eyes in assembly every morning and chanted "every little helps"

I know schools have to have an act of worship. I just don't see why.
Getting together at the start of the day and singing a song, having a talk about something, catching up on the business of the school is clearly a good idea, but why worship anything. Its a school!
If they do have to worship there should be an easy non-stigmatizing way of not doing it. It sounds though at the moment you can only do this by making a fuss and becoming known as the mad trouble-making atheist parents. This doesn't seem to be very inclusive or tolerant

Stella, my love. You can remove your child from worship without stigmatisation. You write to the head, requesting that your child is removed from worship.

Making a fuss and becoming known as the mad trouble-making atheist parents will only come when you try to make other children and parents join you in your rebellion against....the law.

voluntary controlled schools, which are almost always church schools, with the lands and buildings often owned by a charitable foundation. However, the LA employs the schools' staff and has primary responsibility for admissions.

voluntary aided schools, linked to a variety of organisations. They can be faith schools (often the Church of England or the Roman Catholic Church), or non-denominational schools, such as those linked to London Livery Companies. The charitable foundation contributes towards the capital costs of the school, and appoints a majority of the school governors. The governing body employs the staff and has primary responsibility for admissions.

Lougle, I'm not trying to make anyone do anything. I feel there would be an appetite to opt out if it were offered + that people should be given the choice.
"Rebellion against the law" isn't a bad thing if the law's unjust.

But as has been said, there is the option to opt out, you just say you want to, it's not difficult! Although a church school, we have Muslim children attending. They are present in Collective Worship-but don't close their eyes or sing hymns, but don't attend church services ( once a term). Anyone else is free to do the same or similar!

Do you know the status of the school?

I can barely believe this post. Your children have not even started at this school and you want to create a rabble rousing group to lobby against an explicit ethos. It is incredible, can you not see that. Send your children to another school.
So agree with Bagged and Tagged.

mrz, It's described as voluntary controlled. I don't know if the church owns the building. I suspect not.
The head has a "clear vision to develop the school's christian character" according to the bumph in last anglican schools inspection

I'm afraid you are wrong a Church of England voluntary controlled school is owned by the church but the LA pays for any upkeep and employs the teaching staff.

CoE schools

There are three distinct kinds of Church of England school in partnership with local authorities (LAs):

• voluntary aided: the school is owned by the church, a majority of the governors are appointed by the Church, the teachers are appointed and employed by the governing body, the cost of repairs and capital projects is raised by the governing body with 90% grant from the DfES, religious education and worship are distinctively Anglican, the governing body is the admissions authority;
• voluntary controlled: the school is owned by the Church, the Church appoints governors, but there is no Church majority on the governing body, the teachers are employed by the Local Education Authority, the LEA funds repairs and capital projects, religious education follows the local agreed syllabus, the worship is Anglican;
• foundation: the foundation owns the school, the governing body employs the staff and is the admissions authority, the Church appoints a minority of governors, religious education follows an agreed syllabus and the worship is Anglican.

The head has a "clear vision to develop the school's christian character" according to the bumph in last anglican schools inspection

Well, of course he/she does, it's a CHURCH school!