Our Multi Faith Mission

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy is a Church of England school with a distinctive Christian ethos that welcomes young people of all faiths and none.  Part of our ethos – the way that we do things – is that all students study Religious Studies in every year up to GCSE.

It is called “Religious Studies” for a reason.  This is not religious instruction in any faith.  Rather, it involves learning about religions and world perspectives on the big moral and ethical challenges that human beings face – human rights, discrimination, persecution, war, our relationships with the natural world and the rights of animals.  The subject is taught by specialists, and the curriculum enhanced by the contributions of representatives of different faith communities, and particularly the 5 main faiths in the Greater Manchester area – Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and Sikhism.  The curriculum in Years 7-9 is the Diocesan-approved syllabus which also includes the non-religious world views of humanism, secularism, and agnosticism, so that students understand the range of thinking and philosophies by which different human beings seek to make meaning of the world.  All students take GCSE.  The curriculum focuses on Christian and Muslim perspectives to specific and ethical questions as these are the 2 main faiths represented in Oldham. We are happy to discuss the Religious Studies curriculum with parents/carers and all curriculum materials are available on the school’s learning platform. 

The science curriculum teaches evolution in full.  Sometimes students will ask about creationism in Religious Studies.  All discussion is encouraged.  What we teach students is that this view is not a valid scientific theory and is not held by mainstream churches/faiths. The science curriculum teaches evolution in full.

Religious leaders from different faiths will be involved in annual faith days for our Year 7 students, together with The Blue Coat School Year 7s and Year 5 students from our Trust primary schools: all faiths are equally respected and represented in the teaching of Religious Studies.