YES - Dr John Dunford, general secretary, Secondary HeadsAssociation
The law states that schools must hold a daily act of collective worship.The law, in this instance, is an ass. Ordering a student to worship islike ordering them to enjoy mathematics. Schools are required to providesocial, cultural, moral and spiritual education and are inspected onthis. Schools would continue to carry out this obligation even if thelaw on compulsory worship did not exist. It is time for the Governmentto take on the bishops in the House of Lords.
NO - Canon John Hall, chief education officer of the Church of England'sBoard of Education
We fully support current legislation, which states that daily collectiveworship is the right of every child and "should be maintained as part ofthe pupils' educational experience". Seventy two per cent of thepopulation describe themselves as Christian (Census 2001). Parents andstudents see daily worship as important in providing a framework foryoung people and to structure their spiritual dimension to articulatetheir thoughts and feelings.
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