Tag: education

Bishop of Ely defends freedom of speech in universities

“If we allow the dominant agenda to become the refusal to be exposed to being offended, we deny ourselves the rich opportunity to be agents of the transformation of conflict through positive engagement.”–  Bishop of Ely, 26/11/5

On 26th November 2015 the House of Lords debated a motion from  Baroness Deech: “That this House takes note of the protection of freedom of speech in universities.” The Bishop of Ely, Rt Revd Stephen Conway, spoke in the debate:

14.10.16 Bishop of Ely 1The Lord Bishop of Ely: I, too, take the opportunity to congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, for bringing this debate about. I would be very glad to engage in metaphysical conversation with the noble Lord, Lord Patten, about the soul of the university sometime outside the Chamber. I am more concerned for us to promote and understand the importance of religious literacy in the defence of free speech, and the Church’s engagement with a number of institutions in seeking to make the most of the Prevent agenda without throwing aside openness and readiness to engage in full debate. Continue reading “Bishop of Ely defends freedom of speech in universities”

Bishop of Ely highlights role of church schools during Lords debate on Education and Adoption Bill

“We are committed to excellence and parents choose Church of England schools because of the broad and rounded education they provide… I urge the Minister and his officials and his officials to ensure that clear protocols and their consistent application are used to support the continued partnership between church and state as providers of education.” – Bishop of Ely, 20/10/15

14.10.16 Bishop of Ely 1On 20th October 2015 the House of Lords debated the Government’s Education and Adoption Bill. The Bishop of Ely, Rt Revd Stephen Conway, who is chair of the Church of England’s Board of Education, spoke about the work of church schools in character education. He also underlined the commitment of the church to helping improve standards through collaborative work between church schools, diocesan bodies and multi-academy trusts. The text of his speech and the minister’s response is below.


The Lord Bishop of Ely: The Church of England is firmly committed to delivering outstanding education that promotes academic excellence, together with the development of the whole child. I welcome all that has already been said about any approach to metrics in education to take a holistic view strongly into account.

I have already spoken in this House about the importance of character education. Last week, the Church of England launched a new discussion paper, on character education in schools, at a conference that was attended by teachers, school leaders and many people involved. The point was our doing this in partnership with the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham, so that the work we are seeking to do in this area is of interest not just to those of us in the church but looks at how we can take a holistic approach to the education of the whole child across the maintained education service. Continue reading “Bishop of Ely highlights role of church schools during Lords debate on Education and Adoption Bill”

Israel: Bishop of Coventry asks Government about attacks on church property and the funding of Christian schools

Bp Coventry May 2015On 24th September 2015 the Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, received written answers to questions of Government on attacks on church property in Israel and the funding of Christian schools.

The Lord Bishop of Coventry:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their current assessment of the number of “price tag” attacks on church property in Israel.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We condemn all extremist violence, including those attacks against religious buildings. Whilst most ‘price tag’ attacks have taken place in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, we are aware that on 18 June the Benedictine Church of the Multiplication at Tabgha, on the Sea of Galilee, was set on fire and vandalised with graffiti. Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised this at the time with the Israeli Foreign Ministry and National Security Council. Continue reading “Israel: Bishop of Coventry asks Government about attacks on church property and the funding of Christian schools”

Bishop of Peterborough asks Government about the role of arts and humanities in education

14.02 PeterboroughOn the 22nd July 2015 Lord Aberdare asked the Government ‘how they plan to ensure that the United Kingdom retains its global position in the creative sector in the light of plans announced in June to require all state secondary school pupils to study five English Baccalaureate core subject areas, which exclude any music, arts or culture element’. The Bishop of Peterborough, the Rt Revd Donald Allister asked a supplementary question.

The Lord Bishop of Peterborough: My Lords, does the Minister agree that education is about not just national productivity but the whole of human flourishing? The arts, music and cultural subjects in general are essential to that.

Continue reading “Bishop of Peterborough asks Government about the role of arts and humanities in education”

Bishop of Birmingham responds to the Budget

“The test of the success of this and future Budgets for a country living within its means will be the growing number of households that are equipped and completely free to earn the means to live.” Bishop of Birmingham 21/07/15

01.04.14 Bishop of BirminghamOn the 21st July 2015 the Bishop of Birmingham, the Rt Revd David Urquhart, responded to the  Budget Statement, during a debate in the House of Lords. The Bishop called for an inclusive capitalism and questioned Lord O’Neill the Commercial Secretary for the Treasury about the impact of the changes to working age benefits. The Bishop also spoke about the need to improve productivity via energising the local economy alongside investing in infrastructure, skills, training and apprenticeships.

Continue reading “Bishop of Birmingham responds to the Budget”

Education and Adoption Bill – Speech by Caroline Spelman

Caroline SpelmanOn the 22nd June 2015 the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP, spoke during the second reading debate of the Government’s Education and Adoption Bill. Emphasising the role of the Church of England in education, and welcoming the move towards more multi-academy trusts, Mrs Spelman sought assurances that the proposed new Government powers of intervention would not limit the Church’s ability to control its existing schools and promote new ones. Her speech is in full, below:

Continue reading “Education and Adoption Bill – Speech by Caroline Spelman”

Bishop of Norwich draws attention to social impacts of education and media

On 3rd June 2015, during the debate on the Queen’s Speech, the Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Revd Graham James, spoke on the social and cultural aspects of education, as well as those of broadcast media. The text of his speech is below and can be watched online here:

14.06.12 Bishop of Norwich

The Lord Bishop of Norwich: My Lords, the gracious Speech said that the Government intend,

“to improve schools … and create more academies”.

I declare an interest as one of the sponsors of the first academy in Norfolk, the Open Academy, set up under the last Labour Government. It is now part of a thriving diocesan academies trust committed to school improvement. So I support the Government’s overall aim to improve schools, but there are areas where the direction of travel needs a few extra signposts. Continue reading “Bishop of Norwich draws attention to social impacts of education and media”

Church Commissioner Questions – Bishops’ Letter, Church Buildings, Living Wage, Ethical Investments, St George’s Jerusalem

Tony Baldry MPOn the 11th March 2015 during the final House of Commons session of this Parliament for questions to the Church Commissioners, MPs asked the Second Church Estates Commissioner, the Rt Hon Canon Sir Tony Baldry MP, about the House of Bishops’ Pastoral Letter, St George’s Jerusalem, the rural church, faith leaders and citizenship values, church buildings, the living wage, Lichfield Cathedral and ethical investment.

This was the final Church Commissioner questions session for Sir Tony Baldry MP, who retires at the end of this Parliament. Tributes to his work were paid by MPs and by the Speaker.

A full transcript can be found below.

Continue reading “Church Commissioner Questions – Bishops’ Letter, Church Buildings, Living Wage, Ethical Investments, St George’s Jerusalem”

The Bishop of Norwich calls for protection of academy funding

On 3rd March 2015, Baroness Jones of Whitchurch asked Her Majesty’s Government what advice they have issued to individual academy schools regarding the £2.5 billion held in their reserves. The Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Revd Graham James, asked a supplementary question:

14.06.12 Bishop of NorwichThe Lord Bishop of Norwich: My Lords, some academies and other schools have secured private funding which they ring-fence to finance a chaplain, international links or some other good purpose. For the avoidance of doubt, will the Minister give an assurance that such funds are not to be treated as free reserves? Further, will he encourage academies to secure such funding?

Lord Nash (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools): I entirely agree with the right reverend Prelate and I pay tribute to his very good work in the school system in Norfolk. We should welcome such funds into the school system. We should welcome people who bring these funds and give their time freely. It is a development that we should seek to encourage.

(Via Parliament.uk)

Bishop of St Albans – Libraries (Written Answer)

On 26th February 2015, the Bishop of St Albans, the Rt Revd Alan Smith, received an answer to a written question on library closures in the UK.

Bishop of St AlbansThe Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of library closures on educational standards across the United Kingdom.[HL5085]

Baroness Jolly (Government Whip): The DCMS has not made any assessment of the impact of library closures on educational standards across the United Kingdom. Every Library Authority has a duty to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service.

(via Parliament.uk)