(1)It shall be the duty of every local education authority to constitute a standing advisory council on religious education—
(a)to advise the authority upon such matters connected with religious worship in county schools and the religious education to be given in accordance with an agreed syllabus as the authority may refer to the council or as the council may see fit; and
(b)to carry out the functions conferred by section 12 of this Act on councils constituted under this section.
References below in this section and in sections 12 and 13 of this Act to the council are references to any council constituted by a local education authority under this section.
(2)The matters referred to in subsection (1) above include in particular methods of teaching, the choice of materials and the provision of training for teachers.
(3)The council shall consist of—
(a)the representative members required by subsection (4) below; and
(b)where any agreed syllabus for the time being adopted by the authority is in use at one or more grant-maintained schools, a person appointed by the governing body or (as the case may be) by the governing bodies of the school or schools concerned;
and may also include co-opted members.
(4)Subject to subsection (5) below, the representative members required by this subsection are persons appointed by the authority to represent respectively—
(a)such Christian and other religious denominations as, in the opinion of the authority, will appropriately reflect the principal religious traditions in the area;
(b)except in the case of an area in Wales, the Church of England;
(c)such associations representing teachers as, in the opinion of the authority, ought, having regard to the circumstances of the area, to be represented; and
(d)the authority;
and references below in this section to representative groups on the council are references to the members appointed by virtue of paragraphs (a), (c) and (d) above respectively and, where members are required to be appointed by virtue of paragraph (b) above, the members so appointed.
(5)Where members are required to be appointed by virtue of paragraph (b) of subsection (4) above, the representative members required by paragraph (a) of that subsection shall not include persons appointed to represent the Church of England.
(6)On any question to be decided by the council only the representative groups on the council shall be entitled to vote, and each such group shall have a single vote.
(7)The representative groups on the council, other than that consisting of persons appointed to represent the authority, may at any time require a review of any agreed syllabus for the time being adopted by the authority.
Each representative group concerned shall have a single vote on the question of whether to require such a review.
(8)On receipt by the authority of written notification of any such requirement, it shall be the duty of the authority to cause a conference constituted in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 5 to the 1944 Act to be convened for the purpose of reconsidering any agreed syllabus to which the requirement relates.
(9)The council shall in each year publish a report with respect to the exercise of their functions and any action taken by representative groups on the council under subsection (7) above during the last preceding year.
(10)The council’s report shall in particular—
(a)specify any matters in respect of which the council have given advice to the authority;
(b)broadly describe the nature of the advice given; and
(c)where any such matter was not referred to the council by the authority, give the council’s reasons for offering advice on that matter.
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 11 restricted by S.I. 1989/46, art. 3(3)
C2Ss. 11, 13 modified by S.I. 1989/46, Sch. 1