Education Reform Act 1988

3 (1) In section 28 of that Act (special provisions as to religious education in aided schools and in special agreement schools), the following subsections shall be substituted for subsection (1)—

“(1) In the case of an aided or special agreement school the provision for religious education for pupils at the school which is required by section 2(1)(a) of the Education Reform Act 1988 to be included in the school’s basic curriculum shall be provision for religious education—

(a) in accordance with any provision of the trust deed relating to the school or, where provision for that purpose is not made by such a deed, in accordance with the practice observed in the school before it became a voluntary school; or

(b) in accordance with any arrangements under this section.

(1A) Subject to subsection (1C) of this section, the religious education given to pupils at such a school shall be under the control of the governors of the school.

(1B) Where the parents of pupils in attendance at such a school—

(a) desire them to receive religious education in accordance with any agreed syllabus adopted by the local education authority; and

(b) cannot with reasonable convenience cause those pupils to attend any school at which that syllabus is in use;

then, unless the authority are satisfied that owing to any special circumstances it would be unreasonable to do so, arrangements shall be made for religious education in accordance with that syllabus to be given to those pupils in the school during the times set apart for the giving of religious education in the school in accordance with the provision for that purpose included in the school’s basic curriculum by virtue of section 2(1)(a) of that Act.

(1C) Those arrangements shall be made by the governors of the school, unless the local education authority are satisfied that the governors are unwilling to make the arrangements, in which case they shall be made by the authority.”

(2) The word “education” shall be substituted for the word “instruction” in each place where it occurs in subsections (2) to (4) of that section.