Okay, so I had not intended to start a full discussion on this. I just wanted to share the petition. But, since this is a discussion board, evidently some people want to discuss. I can also understand how the limited information means that people fill in the gaps, sometimes correctly, sometimes incorrectly.
So, just get a few points straight and to just explain the background to the post. I have fond memories of the Harvest festival as a child. My state school celebrated autumn, thinking about where food comes from, giving and sharing. It provides a wonderful opportunity to consider the beauty of the natural world and the nature of the life cycle, and community. As an adult, I understand and respect that for people who believe in God, part of that, for them, is thanking God. However, in this day and age, I find it not only inappropriate but also disrespectful for a non-faith State school to make a school celebration largely about God, Christian or otherwise. Within the context of the schools Harvest festival, it meant that 75% of the songs that the children had been taught had a strongly 'God' driven message. These were not the old traditional faithfuls, but modern songs that included thanking God for the food in the shopping trolley. I think it is entirely appropriate to think about where food comes from, to think about community and sharing with that community if you are in a position to help others who might benefit from that. However, I do find it inappropriate to suggest that this type of community spirit is exclusively related to God or the worship of a God. I found the discussion of the bible and Jesus inappropriate. It was shared as fact, not as a basic set of beliefs. If my children were in a faith school, then fair enough, but they aren't.
That the 'assembly' takes place in a church, honestly I thought that this was because the school doesn't have a big enough space to get the year groups and parents together. And to the person that ask 'what did you expect' well, I have never been to an assembly held in a church. I have never been to a harvest 'service' in a church. So what I expected, not having experienced this before, was the reverend to welcome everyone, possibly to explain what they do in their religion, but I did not expect him to treat the event as though everyone in the school shared his beliefs. But as much as anything, I did not expect that the harvest songs the children had been taught at school would be so heavily religious. And to explain, that for me is when the message of the song is that it is God that we should thank for our food, and it is to God that we should be grateful at harvest time.
If the children were taken to celebrations of different religions, for example, one Christian celebration, one Muslim celebration, one Jewish celebration, I would support that. Although I myself do not believe in God, experiencing the faiths of others helps to foster understanding. However, as far as I am concerned, by insisting on focusing on one religion which happens to be the religion of some members of the school, the school are failing in their duty to educate my child about tolerance and inclusion and the real meaning of community, which is embracing difference. By forcing parents to withdraw their children from the assembly of a non-faith school because a Church of England God is placed at the centre of discussions of behaviour, community, morality and respect I personally find disgraceful. It excludes and alienates some members of the school community in a way that I feel is totally inappropriate. My child would hate being excluded from these key school events because she wants to belong.
A non-faith school should be about teaching religion, not imposing it. I know that it is a legal requirement for schools to include an act of worship, but there is a vast difference in how that is interpreted.
I do not object to the sharing of Christian stories as part of cultural understanding. I wish there was more sharing of other religious events and festivals because that would enhance understanding, and it would encourage thinking about religion, about beliefs and difference. But Christianity is not discussed as a belief, but as a fact. That I object to.