Staffordshire Student Council
for
Religious Education

Why a Student Council?

The idea for a Student Council to support RE in Staffordshire began to take shape in the meetings of SACRE (Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education) held during 2003.  Members had been told about a ‘Shadow SACRE’ that had been set up in Bradford.  This was made up of students drawn from the sixth forms of local schools and was seen as a very positive way to encourage young people to debate religion, faith and culture.  It also offered opportunities to develop student responsibility and community involvement in keeping with the spirit of, and requirements for, Citizenship in secondary schools. 

Members of the Staffordshire SACRE considered the Bradford experience and agreed that it would be beneficial to RE in the county to set up a similar body, a Student Council, to support and promote the subject in schools and to liaise with the SACRE, giving direct access to the student voice. 

A bid for funding to get the Council off the ground was successful, and a development plan was drawn up to establish the group during the academic year 2004-2005.  Despite some teething troubles three schools nominated students from Year 12 and these keen volunteers were invited to the Kingston Centre for the inaugural meeting on July 13^th 2005.  Students and their teachers joined members of SACRE for lunch, and the new council members began their term of office, spending the afternoon getting to know each other, finding out about the SACRE, discussing RE and the law, and agreeing their remit.  The council was to be brought up to full strength of around twenty members in September 2005 when a new cohort would be drawn from students in Year 12.

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