York's Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE) was established in 1996 as required by the 1988 Education Reform Act.
SACRE meets termly, including for the presentation of their Annual Report in December.
It's composed of 4 representative groups:
- Christian denominations, other than the Church of England, and representatives of other faiths
- the local Church of England
- teachers' associations
- councillors
Religious education syllabus
Religious Education (RE) is not part of the National Curriculum, but must be taught in schools by law. The syllabus (known as the 'Agreed Syllabus') must be produced locally.
York's Agreed Syllabus was launched in May 2021 but cannot be published on this website for copyright reasons. Email SACRE if you require further details.
SACRE's duties
SACREs are legally responsible for advising Local Education Authorities (LAs) on RE teaching and collective worship, and ensuring compliance.
The Agreed Syllabus must legally be reviewed every 5 years - this takes place at an Agreed Syllabus Conference, involving the same groupings as a SACRE.
York SACRE's aims
York SACRE aims to:
- promote a high quality Agreed Syllabus
- help teachers and schools raise standards in RE teaching
- help schools improve the quality of collective worship
- contribute towards social cohesion, particularly in respect of improving religious and racial harmony within the community
Supporting SACRE documentation
View supporting SACRE documentation:
- SACRE Constitution 2019-20
- An Introduction to City of York SACRE
- SACRE Code of Conduct and responsibilities
Collective worship
View our guidelines on collective worship:
- Collective Worship Guidance 2017
- Appendix 1: Collective Worship Model Policy
- Appendix 2: Collective Worship Determination Guidance
- Appendix 3: Collective Worship Themes
- Appendix 4: Self Evaluation of Collective Worship in York
York SACRE meetings
York's SACRE usually meets at West Offices, but sometimes, also in schools. Members of the public are also welcome to attend meetings (from 6.00pm to 7.00pm).
York SACRE will meet on the following dates in 2024 to 2025:
- 8 July 2024 at 6.00pm
- 15 October 2024 at 6.00pm
- 27 January 2025 at 6.00pm
- 11 March 2025 at 6.00pm
- 15 July 2025 at 6.00pm
View the SACRE meeting minutes from 22 January 2024 and the York SACRE Annual Report 2022-23.
York SACRE membership
Members are currently as follows:
Group A:
Such Christian denominations and other religious denominations as, in the opinion of the Authority, will approximately reflect the principal religious traditions in the area.
- Karen Vincent (Faith/Catholic)
- Penny Coppin-Siddall (Faith/ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints)
- Ian Hodgson (Faith/Humanist)
- Daryoush Mazloum (Faith/Bahai’i)
- Imam Amar (Faith/Muslim)
- Ben Rich (Vice Chair) (Faith/Jewish)
Group B:
A groups of persons representing The Church of England.
- Sue Bland (CoE)
- Joseph Everdell (CoE)
Group C:
A group of persons to represent such associations representing teachers as, in the opinion of the authority, ought to be represented, having regard to the circumstances of the area.
- Taco Michiels (Joseph Rowntree School)
- Andy Tod (Ralph Butterfield Primary School)
- Diane Norton (York St John University)
Group D:
A group of persons representing the City of York Council. In this case of Elected M embers appointment to this group should ensure political balance and state which political group they represent. As an alternative, the Council may appoint representatives such as a governors association.
- Cllr Robert Webb (Chair) (City of York Council)
- Cllr Emilie Knight (City of York Council)
- Cllr Martin Rowley BEM (City of York Council)
- Cllr Sarah Wilson (City of York Council)
Also see