Graphic showing a school pupil with pictures floating around their head: a Shakespeare book, a maths book, a chemistry book, and a pair of praying hands and a bible.

Preaching is Not Teaching

We need to replace religious worship in non-denominational Scottish schools with a secular, inclusive alternative.

Young people in Scotland are still made to take part in religious observance at school, no matter their age, maturity or personal beliefs. This cannot be justified in a secular democracy.

The Problem

State schools in Scotland are required by law to provide acts of religious observance or RO. This practice began in 1872, when Christianity dominated Scottish life. Over 150 years later, our faith and belief landscape has changed dramatically. Over 60% of school-aged children say they are non-religious, and more pupils identify with other religions such as Islam, Hinduism, and Sikhism than ever before.

In recent years, policy-makers have sought to balance the requirement for RO with the need to respect pupils of all beliefs and none. The Scottish government describes its current RO model as “inclusive, objective, and pluralist”, and has issued non-statory guidance for schools aiming to ensure it is delivered in this way.

We became aware that my daughter was being forced to pray because she told us how uncomfortable she felt. She went along with it the first time she was told to do it but the second time she just sat quietly. She was told by an adult very sharply that she was being disrespectful if she didn’t go along with it. She was upset and embarrassed by this.
Parent

Some schools have adopted a secular, “Time for Reflection” model to replace RO. But many schools continue to offer exclusively Christian, worship-based RO This is entirely inappropriate and has resulted in concrete instances of discrimination against non-religious and minority-religious pupils and parents/carers.

Schools are also required to provide parents with “sufficient information” about the content and format of RO activities. Yet parents consistently report poor communication on the RO programme. Many parents and carers don’t expect religious worship to take place in a non-denominational context, and some report first learning that their child had taken part after asking what they did at school that day.

The Solution

We need to replace religious observance in non-denominational schools with an inclusive, non-confessional, “Time for Reflection” model, issuing clear guidance for teachers. This approach would involve reflecting on moral issues without being led in a particular way of thinking. No child would be asked to pray, sing religious songs, or affirm a belief they didn’t hold.

Schools must inform parents/carers about RO activities at their children’s schools. The school inspectorate should carry out a thematic review of RO in non-denominational schools to assess whether schools are being supported to deliver inclusive RO.

Our Campaign

In 2025 we published our landmark report Preaching is not Teaching, based on testimony from pupils, teachers, carers and parents across Scotland who have not been offered inclusive, objective, or pluralist RO. The report found that parents and carers were not always informed when their child was taking part in RO or given details of its content or format.

We will continue to press the Scottish government for a new, secular and non-confessional model to replace RO. We will argue for greater support for schools to ensure parents, carers, and pupils are aware of their rights and of the content of RO activities. We will push for a school inspectorate review of the current content of RO in non-denominational schools across Scotland.