Written by Joe Higgins, Policy & Campaigns Officer, Humanist Society Scotland
Everyone is free to choose their own religion or belief. Yet children in Scotland can be compelled to take part in collective worship and prayers at school. The status-quo has drawn criticism from the UNCRC committee, which has twice urged the Scottish Government to give school pupils the choice to opt themselves out. A new Bill claims to address questions about UNCRC compliance, but falls far short of respecting the rights of every child. In this blog, Together member Humanist Society Scotland explores the issue of withdrawal rights for religious observance as the ‘first real test’ of Holyrood’s commitment to UNCRC incorporation.
What is religious observance and how is it delivered in schools?
Under Section 8 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, all state schools are required to provide acts of religious observance (RO) on a ‘sufficiently frequent’ basis.
The Scottish Government describes RO in non-denominational schools as inclusive, objective, and pluralist. Non statutory guidance encourages all schools to draw upon the ‘rich resources’ of Scotland’s Christian heritage when planning RO. But headteachers also need to consider the diversity of school communities and ensure all pupils and staff can take part ‘without compromise to their personal beliefs’. This is especially important when we consider Scotland’s secular and religiously diverse population. The 2022 Census found that over 70% of school-aged children now identify as non-religious or with non-Christian beliefs. In contrast, fewer than 1 in 4 pupils identify with either of the historically dominant churches.
Some schools have followed the guidance on RO and adopted a ‘Time for Reflection’ model. This more inclusive approach is less focused on prayers and religious worship, and more about reflecting on a moral issue without being led in a particular way of thinking. Schools tend to invite a range of speakers from different faith and non faith backgrounds.
But our new report, Preaching is not Teaching, found that RO is still exclusively Christian-led and worship-based in many non-denominational schools. Assemblies are often held in church and involve religious worship, prayer, and hymns. Schools also frequently incorporate religious elements into whole-school ‘celebrating success’ assemblies against government advice. Testimonies contained in the report show how these non-inclusive practices can isolate and discriminate against non-religious children:
“I don’t like to go to the church with my school because it feels like I’m being forced to paint my room a colour I don’t like. When I’m sitting in the church I feel like the minister is nice to the children but I don’t feel like he’s talking to me, instead I feel like he’s talking to a different class and I’m just listening through the door. The minister doesn’t use words like ‘Christians believe’ and instead uses words that imply it’s a fact.” – Pupil
“Children often ask me why they are required to attend Christian services. One child (aged around 10-12) pushed further and asked whether he had to pray and sing hymns. I told him that I wouldn’t make him do anything he was uncomfortable with. That same child later told me he felt pressure to join in with hymns and prayers at assembly, despite behaving in a respectful manner as I had asked.” – Teacher
“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. This was when we started to ask her about the religion being taught in school.” – Parent
The right to withdraw and the UNCRC
Section 9 of the 1980 Act, titled “Conscience Clause”, gives a parent or carer the right to withdraw their child from religious observance. However, in Preaching is not Teaching, parents and pupils report poor communication from schools on the content and nature of RO activities. Many parents and carers don’t expect religious worship to take place in a non-denominational school, and some report first learning that their child had taken part after asking what they did at school that day.
“We discovered in Primary 5 that our child had had to take part in monthly assemblies led by a brethren preacher involving praying. Had we known this was happening we would have withdrawn her from it. The school did not inform us other than a date marked on a calendar saying ‘Jamsie’ was leading assembly.” – Parent
“I don’t think many people even know that they are allowed not to go if their parents tell the school.” – Pupil
“During my time working as a class teacher in East Ayrshire and Glasgow, I haven’t explicitly seen evidence of schools informing parents/ families of RO taking place.” – Teacher
Parents and carers also report resistance and hostility when trying to withdraw their children. They tell us that school leaders fail to understand why parents wouldn’t want their children to attend RO. Common perceptions are that atheists, agnostics and humanists ‘don’t believe in anything’ and are simply making trouble by refusing to participate. Such encounters can be stigmatising and distressing for families.
“The school has made out this is my problem – they say very few parents complain or opt their children out. This is (at least in part) because the school has been less than transparent about what’s going on, and I’m just lucky to have an articulate child. When I raised my concerns with the headteacher, they replied: ‘I won’t apologise, this is a Christian country’.” – Parent
As no equivalent withdrawal right is afforded to pupils themselves, RO is a de facto compulsory activity if a child takes a different view from their parent or carer. The law bluntly prioritises the views of the parent and presumes that no child – regardless of their age or maturity – is capable of making a decision on participation in RO (in contravention with UNCRC Article 5). This has drawn criticism from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which has cited concerns around children’s freedom of expression (Article 12) and thought, religion and conscience (Article 14).
In its 2016 General Comment No. 20, the Committee clearly articulated that it is pupils who must have the final say over participating in acts of religious worship:
“It is the child who exercises the right to freedom of religion, not the parent, and the parental role necessarily diminishes as the child acquires an increasingly active role in exercising choice throughout adolescence. Freedom of religion should be respected in schools and other institutions, including with regard to choice over attendance in religious instruction classes, and discrimination on the grounds of religious beliefs should be prohibited.”
And in its latest Concluding Observations in 2023, the Committee made a clear recommendation to the Scottish Government to allow pupils to independently opt out of religious observance:
“Repeal legal provisions for compulsory attendance in collective worship and establish statutory guidance to ensure the right of all children, including children under 16 years of age, to withdraw from religious classes without parental consent.”
The ‘Religious Observance Bill’
On 30 April 2025, the Scottish Government introduced the Children (Withdrawal from Religious Education and Amendment of UNCRC Compatibility Duty) (Scotland) Bill.
Part 1 of the Bill seeks to amend Section 9 of the 1980 Act to “give due weight to pupils’ views” when a parent makes a withdrawal request for religious observance and religious education. According to the policy memorandum, the proposed changes will put the Scottish Government’s compliance with the UNCRC in this context “beyond doubt”.
The amendment gives school pupils a new right to object if their parent tries to withdraw them from RO and/or RME. Unless the school can demonstrate that the child is not capable of forming a view (capacity is presumed), the school must follow the child’s wishes. In effect, pupils are given a new independent right to opt in to RO and RME. However, a child who wishes to opt out of either subject will still require parental permission.
Humanist Society Scotland has three core concerns in relation to the Bill:
1.The Bill wrongly conflates religious observance and religious education.
The requirement for schools to provide religious observance and religious education (and a corresponding parental right to withdraw) has co-existed in law since the establishment of mandatory education in 1872. The Scottish Government has chosen to maintain this conflation for the purposes of the Bill, despite the clear distinction between the two topics in 2025.
RME is a core curriculum subject that covers a variety of faiths and beliefs, including humanism, in an objective and critical manner. It is essential for preparing children to live in a free and diverse society. In contrast, religious observance is often delivered by faith leaders in an uncritical and proselyting manner with comparatively little oversight from schools or local authorities. As Claire Benton-Evans of the Scottish Episcopal Church pointed out in her evidence to the equalities committee, “RO is a matter of belief and RME is a matter of education.”
Humanist Society Scotland believes that participation in religious observance must be optional and a decision that children, when they’re old enough, should make for themselves. But given its importance in supporting children’s Article 29 right to an education, neither parents nor pupils should have the opportunity to withdraw from RME.
2.The Bill is incompatible with the UNCRC and will create a hierarchy of belief in schools.
In failing to provide pupils with a reciprocal, independent right to opt out of religious observance, the Bill does not comply with the UNCRC or the longstanding recommendation of the UN committee. The government has rightly acknowledged that children who are capable of forming a view should have their view respected. Yet the proposals only extend this right to pupils who actively want to participate in RO, whilst disenfranchising those who don’t.
In practice, the Bill risks creating a hierarchy of belief in schools. Religious young people or pupils who are keen to explore their faith will have the right to opt in to RO against their parents’ wishes. But humanist young people will have no equivalent right to opt out where their views differ from their parents. Children must have the final say no matter their beliefs.
3.The Bill is drafted outside the scope of the UNCRC (Incorporation) Act 2024.
In his evidence to the equalities committee, our CEO Fraser Sutherland described the Religious Observance Bill as the ‘first real test’ for the Government on UNCRC incorporation. He pointed out that a key objective of passing the UNCRC Act was to give children influence over the legislation that affects their lives. Indeed, Holyrood unanimously agreed that children should be given clearer and more accessible ways of challenging laws in breach of their human rights.
Regrettably, the decision to amend a pre-devolution Act means the provisions of the Religious Observance Bill fall outside the scope of the UNCRC Act. This example – together with a number of recent Bills drafted to amend Westminster statutes – sends a worrying message about the government’s commitment to embedding children’s rights in Scots law.
To make matters worse, the government is proposing to replace a law that is incompatible with the UNCRC with another incompatible law. As is the case today, a child could still be forced to pray against their own beliefs but have no recourse to challenge the law using the powers of the UNCRC Act.
Forging a path forward
It is critically important that every child and young person’s beliefs are respected at school. In the context of religious observance, pupils must be empowered to express their views and for those views to be taken seriously. This sadly isn’t the case today, and it won’t be in future if the Religious Observance Bill passes in its current form.
The problems with Part 1 of the Bill run deep. But with five months until Holyrood is dissolved for elections, MSPs have little headroom to make substantial changes. It is also highly unlikely that the issue of religious observance in schools will return to Parliament anytime soon.
Given these practical constraints, an amendment introducing an independent pupil opt out for RO must be a first priority for MSPs. This won’t address concerns around drafting choice or the status of RME as an opt-out subject. But it will mean that Scotland meets its international human rights obligations in this area, and – crucially – ensure that no school pupil is compelled to perform acts of worship against their own beliefs. We have a real opportunity with this Bill to address an urgent and longstanding children’s rights issue. And while we remain at the relative outset of the parliamentary process (the Stage 1 vote is scheduled for late November), this may be a case of not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Note: This article was written prior to the UK Supreme Court decision JR87 on religious education and collective worship in Northern Ireland. The Court ruled that the provision of RE and worship in a NI school amounted to indoctrination and, therefore, breached the rights of a parent and child under ECHR Article 2 Protocol 1 read together with Article 9. Importantly, the Court found that a right to withdraw placed an ‘undue burden’ on parents and risked stigmatisation of both parent and child, rendering it an insufficient mechanism for protecting their human rights. This decision is binding across the UK and may have consequences for the requirement for religious observance in Scotland.
Note: since this blog was written, the Scottish Parliament’s Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee has published it’s Stage 1 report on the Bill. This includes a review of evidence from expert witnesses, including Together’s Director Juliet Harris, and views from the Committee members themselves. Together is calling on MSPs to pass the Bill at Stage 1, so that amendments can be made at Stage 2 to strengthen it. Read our briefing for MSPs here.
Ends
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