Religious Citizenship in Schools in England and Wales: Responses to Growing Diversity

Abstract

This chapter explores the concept of “religious citizenship,” in the context of state-funded schooling in England and Wales, and against a backdrop of growing religious pluralism. The chapter considers the role of various educational actors in determining the extent to which schools recognize and accommodate diversity of religion and belief. With reference to the existing research literature, religious citizenship is explored through various dimensions of education, including faith schools and pupil admissions, religious education and festivals, collective worship and prayer, and pupil values and interfaith relations. In so doing, the chapter highlights an important dimension of the informal citizenship education that state-funded schools in England and Wales provide to pupils on the basis of their religion and belief.