An atheist couple who launched a High Court challenge because they feel their children are being religiously "indoctrinated" during assemblies have won their judicial review claim. The Burford primary school in the Cotswolds in Oxfordshire is one of 33 schools of the Church of England's Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST). Although parents were already entitled to withdraw their children from assemblies, even in church-run schools, The Harrises have argued that the school must provide an "inclusive assembly as a meaningful alternative for pupils withdrawn from Christian worship," rather than simply supervision of the children.
Update: An atheist couple who made a claim for judicial review over the fact that the Church of England School to which they send their children should create a non-religious provision have suceeded in the High Court.
The claim challenged provisions for colletive worship. Under UK law, state schools in England and Wales have been required to provide collective religious worship, since 1944.
The Harrises argued that these provisions conflicted with freedom of belief under Article 9 of the Human Rights Act 1998, which incorporates the European Convention into UK law.
The school will be required to offer alternative assemblies with "equal educational worth".
The Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust which runs the school has said "it had also agreed the school will no longer hold its school leavers’ ceremony in church or give bibles to all children."