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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting of Conwy SACRE held on 7 February 2024 be approved as a correct record.
RESOLVED: That Roger Boon (Chair), Phil Lord (RE Consultant), Sam Earlandson (Church in Wales) and Hayley Jones (Teacher Representative) review questionnaire feedback and agree actions for the Conwy SACRE Strategic Management Plan.
RESOLVED: That the SACRE newsletter be noted.
RESOLVED: That the collective worship materials be endorsed and shared with schools. Note: The Religious Education Consultant declared a personal interest in the above item as he runs a business providing materials for collective worship.
RESOLVED: That the annual analysis of inspection reports be noted.
RESOLVED: That the Conwy SACRE Constitution be revised to include a Muslim representative.
RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Wales Association of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education held on 5 March 2024 be noted.
Apologies for absence were received from Neil Hawkins (Humanist Representative), Karl Lawson (Secondary School Representative) and Janine Tenant Jones (Special School Representative)
In the interest of transparency, the Religious Education Consultant declared a personal interest in agenda item 8ii (Presentation from the Religious Education consultant, on section 4d of the Strategic Management Plan 'to encourage the development of links and materials to support schools in their collective worship' Primary Sector) as he runs a business providing materials for collective worship.
None.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting of Conwy SACRE held on 7 February 2024 be approved as a correct record.
The minutes of the meeting of Conwy SACRE held on 7 February 2024 were submitted for approval. RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting of Conwy SACRE held on 7 February 2024 be approved as a correct record.
Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) representation The Religious Education (RE) Consultant had met with the Education Improvement Team in respect of PRU representation. If agreed, the Conwy SACRE Constitution would need to be amended accordingly. Questionnaire The Chair advised that there had now been a good response rate to the SACRE questionnaire. Initial Teacher Training The RE Consultant advised that SACRE had strong links with Bangor University. A presentation would be provided to a future meeting of Conwy SACRE. The following was discussed: • Concerns in respect of the availability of a bursary for those undertaking teacher training in England, which may deter students from studying in Wales. • The Wales Association of SACREs had met with Kevin Palmer (Deputy Director for Pedagogy, Leadership and Professional Learning - Welsh Government) to raise concerns. • Further discussions would take place at the next Conwy SACRE meeting. Raising Head Teacher Awareness The Chair had attended a meeting of Secondary Head Teachers. Many Head Teachers had not been aware of the work carried out by SACRE. Information had now been shared and positive feedback received. Progress would be followed up during the Autumn term. Future of Religious Studies Examinations The RE Consultant advised that a new GSCE would be introduced in 2025 and that the Agored qualification would no longer be viable. The Welsh Joint Education Committee (WJEC) and qualifications Wales were considering including 6 new units within the religion, values and ethics area of learning. An overview of specification would be published and the proposed units would go out to consultation and then to tender. Links with Global South The Chair advised that as Robin Millar was no longer a Member of Parliament this initiative was unlikely to continue. Communication with Schools It was confirmed that information was shared with schools via bulletins and newsletter as well as various other communication channels within the Local Authority. Youth Forum Feedback The Youth Forum, in conjunction with the Education Improvement Team (EIT), would analyse feedback from a questionnaire to Schools and make recommendations. Response to Request to Promote Holocaust Materials The RE Consultant advised that the package of materials was not yet complete. Links had been established with Bangor University which would help with promoting materials. Reference was made to online seminars for schools which could be explored. Training Video for New Members The training video for new members would be re-circulated to all members of Conwy SACRE.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That Roger Boon (Chair), Phil Lord (RE Consultant), Sam Earlandson (Church in Wales) and Hayley Jones (Teacher Representative) review questionnaire feedback and agree actions for the Conwy SACRE Strategic Management Plan.
The RE Consultant provided a presentation which set out a summary of responses received to the Conwy SACRE questionnaire. Whilst the response rate had been slow initially, a good rate of responses had been received. The breakdown of responses included familiarity with Religious Education and Religion, Values and Ethics (RVE), along with how much time and budget was dedicated to these areas. The following was discussed: • Differentiating between RVE and humanities could be challenging. • It was suggested that the content of a school’s curriculum in respect of RVE be looked at in order to provide an example of how this was delivered. • Overall, there was a good allocation for RVE and humanities within the curriculum. • It was felt that it may be useful to remind schools of the work carried out by Conwy SACRE. • It was agreed that representatives from Conwy SACRE meet to discuss questionnaire responses and agree actions for the Strategic Management Plan. RESOLVED: That Roger Boon (Chair), Phil Lord (RE Consultant), Sam Earlandson (Church in Wales) and Hayley Jones (Teacher Representative) review questionnaire feedback and agree actions for the Conwy SACRE Strategic Management Plan.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the SACRE newsletter be noted.
The Religious Education Consultant presented Conwy SACRE members with the SACRE newsletter which was due to be published in September. The newsletter would include training information for schools, links to national professional learning materials and advice to schools on the rights of parents to withdraw their child from religious education. RESOLVED: That the SACRE newsletter be noted.
The Religious Education Consultant would seek feedback from the Education Improvement Team on how collective worship could be supported. The Head of Education Services would request that effective support for collective worship be included as an agenda item at the Primary and Secondary School Strategic Group Meetings.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the collective worship materials be endorsed and shared with schools. Note: The Religious Education Consultant declared a personal interest in the above item as he runs a business providing materials for collective worship.
The Religious Education Consultant provided Conwy SACRE members with a presentation on collective worship materials and guidance for schools. The presentation included information on: • Legal requirements for collective worship • The working definition of collective worship • Collective worship resources The following was discussed: • The hard work in producing excellent resources to support schools with planning for collective worship was acknowledged. • Collective worship was classed as spirituality in respect of the curriculum. • Prayers did not always take the form of a request to a deity and how help could be offered to others was explored in order to develop spirituality. • In response to concerns that 6 form students could opt out of collective worship, it was suggested that they be asked for their views on a variety of topics and that they be encouraged to connect with nature in order to help their mental health. RESOLVED: That the collective worship materials be endorsed and shared with schools. Note: The Religious Education Consultant declared a personal interest in the above item as he runs a business providing materials for collective worship.
The Religious Education Consultant advised that the teacher network had been established and that representative from each cluster had been identified. Whilst the network had not met during the summer term, dates had been arranged for the next academic year.
The Religious Education Consultant advised that Bangor University had established a framework of support for secondary school knowledge based courses. Seminars had been developed which included religion and non-religious philosophical convictions. Links would be shared via the newsletter.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the annual analysis of inspection reports be noted.
The Religious Education Consultant presented Members with the annual analysis of inspection reports. RESOLVED: That the annual analysis of inspection reports be noted.
The Chair advised that proposed changes to the Conwy SACRE Strategic Management Plan would be reviewed at the next meeting of Conwy SACRE.
The Chair expressed concerns that no response had been received to the SACRE consultation sent to Chairs of Governors. The Religious Education Consultant would prepare an article on the work of SACRE for the governing body newsletter. The Head of Education Services would remind governors of the need to respond to the consultation. The possibility of a Governor Representative on Conwy SACRE would be explored.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the Conwy SACRE Constitution be revised to include a Muslim representative.
It was proposed that the Conwy SACRE Constitution be revised and presented to Council in order that a Muslim representative be included within the membership. The Chair advised that Churches Together in Wales (Cytun) would be willing to provide representation on Conwy SACRE, however the Conwy Cytun was not currently meeting. It was suggested that all church denominations should be represented on Conwy SACRE so that the representative could provide feedback. A nomination for a primary school head teacher representative was awaited and would be chased-up. RESOLVED: That the Conwy SACRE Constitution be revised to include a Muslim representative.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Wales Association of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education held on 5 March 2024 be noted.
Feedback was provided on the Wales Association of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (WASACRE) National Conference. The Minutes of the WASACRE held on 5 March 2024 were presented for information. RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Wales Association of Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education held on 5 March 2024 be noted.
The next meeting of Conwy SACRE would be arranged during the Autumn term.
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