Open up faith schools
Religious schools should be barred from selecting pupils by their faith, a report from the Runnymede Trust charity said yesterday. With state funding comes an obligation to be relevant and open to all citizens, the report by Rob Berkeley, the trust’s deputy director, said. It also calls for RE to be a core part of the national curriculum. The report comes after a two-year investigation into the impact of faith schools on community cohesion.
www.runnymedetrust.org
Following the code
A revised schools admissions code published this week aims to ensure that they do not imply that parents need to give time or money in return for places. But schools can ask parents to support their ethos. This follows the Government’s discovery earlier this year that six schools in Barnet, north London, were asking for or making statements about financial contributions on admissions forms.
Snow shuts schools
Snow led to the closure of around 200 schools in the North West on Tuesday. Weather forecasters said about 2.5cm of snow fell on hills in the region, resulting in school closures across Cumbria, Lancashire and Greater Manchester.
Cabinet papers online
The National Archives has launched a website providing free online access to more than 60 years of Cabinet papers from between 1915 and 1977. It is aimed at A-level and higher education students and contains more than half a million pages of Cabinet Minutes and Memoranda.
Festive messages
From next week, children will be able to send free Christmas cards to their friends under a plan being developed by the Tate gallery and BT. The cards will feature works from the Tate Collection and as part of the Tate Kids scheme there is an online advent calendar and a film section. Go to www.tate.org.ukkids for more details.
Credit crunching
Secondary pupils across the country have been taking part in an annual cookery contest. The Young Chef Challenge requires them to submit original recipes, including beef mince, which costs less than Pounds 10. Four hundred teenagers registered, and shortlisted pupils participated in a regional cook-off this week.
