Queen’s University, Belfast

Grant Awarded 2023/2024: £20,037

The “Religion and Worldviews Education for All” (RWE for All) project was devised to explore possibilities for an inclusive approach to religious education in Northern Ireland (NI), drawing data from several sources: a representative survey of the NI population, focus groups with diverse stakeholders in a ‘Dialogue Group’ format, and a focus group with primary school teachers. 

The survey was undertaken on behalf of the Queen’s research team by LucidTalk in February 2025. There were 3,001 responses to the survey; after data were cleaned and weighted by gender and community background to ensure a representative sample, 1,051 responses were recorded. The Dialogue Group consisted of 19 members with an interest in religious education, including those who belong to belief-groups that up to now have had limited or no opportunities to influence or contribute to syllabus design. The group met six times between October 2024 and May 2025. A focus group with primary school teachers (n=7) was held in June 2025. This included teachers with a range of experience, including one principal with whole-school curriculum responsibility, four teachers involved in coordinating religious education in their school, and two recently graduated teachers with experience of teaching the subject. 

The survey revealed divergent attitudes toward current religious education practices based on religious background, but indicated an appetite for reform. It also showed widespread support for reforming RE to achieve broader outcomes.  

The Dialogue Group and teacher focus group highlighted critical issues regarding current practice. Participants widely reported that religious education is experienced as confessional Christian teaching, with some raising concerns that it borders on indoctrination. Teachers reported significant inconsistency in RE provision (resources used, time allocated) across and within school types. They identified feeling vulnerable and unprepared to manage the growing diversity of beliefs in their classrooms, often lacking the necessary subject knowledge, professional development, or policy guidance. 

Assemblies are closely linked to religious education and school ethos through acts of collective worship. Teachers and parents reported discomfort regarding some visitors who deliver age-inappropriate, judgemental, or fear-inducing messages. While withdrawal from RE or collective worship is a legal right, parents described it as an “impossible dilemma”. Choosing withdrawal risks “othering” or excluding the child, while alternative provision is often vague, inadequate, or lacks educational value. 

The majority of participants across the Dialogue Group and teacher focus group favoured an inclusive, shared religion and worldviews education from which no one would need to withdraw. This was envisaged as a separate curricular area, distinct from religious observance. 

A full copy of the report is available here.