Human Rights and Freedom of Religion or Belief

Culham St Gabriel’s believes that human rights belong to everyone, everywhere – they are fundamental to who we are as human beings and apply to all people regardless of their background, beliefs, or circumstances. Moreover, as an organisation championing religion and worldviews education, we recognise that the right to education is captured in documents including: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. We also recognise that different rights are interlinked, and that the right to education relates strongly to the right of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB). 

Our experience shows that education, especially religion and worldviews education, are powerful tools for fostering: 

• An understanding that everyone has a worldview – religious or non-religious 

• Dialogue within and between worldview traditions 

• Tolerance and appreciation of difference including the benefits of a pluralistic society 

• Advocacy in response to injustice and inequity 

• Human rights awareness and responsibility towards others 

Human Rights, FoRB and our Mission: 

• The right to education is absolutely central to our mission of contributing to a well-informed, respectful and open society.  

• Promoting and protecting Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion is central to our mission. Our funding and programmes are open to those from religious and non-religious worldviews. 

• We are active members of the UK FoRB Forum, collaborating with civil society groups, faith and belief organisations, and human rights NGOs. We facilitate a FoRB and Education network. 

• Our educational initiatives aim to help teachers and pupils develop a “FoRB lens”, enabling them to apply human rights principles within existing curricula. This includes an e-learning course for primary phase teachers. 

• We advocate for community cohesion and interfaith and belief dialogue through FoRB-related education, seeing it as essential for building inclusive, respectful and flourishing school environments. 

• We promote and commission research in the field of FoRB and education to better understand the landscape and highlight best practice 

We have a strategic partnership with the newly established charity Free for All (Charity number: 1211521) to promote education about FoRB.