Wrthi'n llwytho
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RESOLVED that the presentation be received and noted.
RESOLVED that the Denbighshire Spring 2026 Newsletter be received, and the local authority be asked to distribute the newsletter to schools.
RESOLVED that – (b) the approach to raising awareness of SAC(RE) and work to fill the outstanding vacancies on the Advisory Council as discussed and outlined above be approved, and (b) the update on the Denbighshire SAC(RE) constitution and its approval by full Council be noted.
RESOLVED that SAC(RE)’s development plan for 2025 – 2027 (renamed from 2025 – 2026) be agreed and work be carried out with the local authority to ensure that the action plan was achievable.
RESOLVED that the local authority be advised to distribute the support materials (appended to the report) to schools.
RESOLVED that the minutes of the WASACRE meetings held on 2 July 2025 and 19 November 2025 be received and noted.
Mr. Dominic Oakes, Louise Williams and Susan Williams
Councillor Ellie Chard declared a general personal interest because she was a school governor at Ysgol Tir Morfa and Christchurch School. Councillor Emrys Wynne declared a general personal interest because he was a school governor at Ysgol Borthyn and Ysgol Brynhyfryd.
No urgent matters had been raised.
The minutes of the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE) meeting held on 2 October 2025 (previously circulated) were submitted. Matters Arising – Page 8: Item 4 Minutes of Last Meeting – Translating the Untranslatable – the article had not been included in the spring edition of the Denbighshire newsletter but it would be included in the autumn edition. Page 10: Item 7 – SAC(RE) Draft Annual Report 2024/25 – following SAC(RE)’s approval of the report it had been sent to the Welsh Government and WASACRE. Page 10: Item 8 – Denbighshire SAC(RE) Constitution – the Constitution had been received and approved by full Council on 27 January 2026 and the Chair had taken the opportunity to encourage all councillors to attend SAC(RE) meetings. Page 12: Item 10 – EFTRE (European Forum of Teachers of RE) Conference 2025 – a bid to host the 2029 EFTRE Conference in Cardiff was being made and the outcome should be known by Easter. RESOLVED that the minutes of the SACRE meeting held on 2 October 2025 be received and approved as a correct record.
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RESOLVED that the presentation be received and noted.
Luke Donnellan, Director of Understanding Humanism, Humanists UK gave a presentation demonstrating the benefits of including non-religious philosophical convictions, such as Humanism, in the Religion Value and Ethics (RVE) curriculum. The following elements were included in the comprehensive presentation – · RVE in Wales – the legal requirement in Wales to reflect religious traditions were in the main Christian while taking account of other principal religions and that a range of non-religious philosophical convictions were held in Wales · Non-religious philosophical convictions were based on a non-religious worldview e.g. humanism, as opposed to a religious worldview e.g. Christianity · How the inclusion of non-religious philosophical convictions benefits RVE – 1) Knowledge Rich, 2) Mutual Understanding and Social Cohesion, 3) Personal Development: all the arguments for why RE was taught could be applied to why teaching about humanism ought to be included · What is humanism? 5 core features: The Human Being (Natural); Understanding the World (Science); The One Life (Freedom and Happiness); Humanist Ethics (Empathy), and Society (Rights and Responsibilities) – The Amsterdam Declaration: provided a good definition of humanist beliefs · Humanism in Wales – in the 2021 census there were more non-religious people in Wales than Christians with between one third and one half of the non-religious having a humanist worldview; Wales, since devolution was a Secular Country with the dissolution of the church and state and the Senedd removing prayers from the beginning of its meetings · Wales Support Resources – provided details of and links to a wealth of teaching/school resources on understanding humanism; guidance on including humanism and non-religious philosophical convictions; translations of resources; history of humanism in Wales and humanists from Wales. Members thanked Mr. Donnellan for the interesting and informative presentation which had been well received and took the opportunity to discuss humanists’ values, beliefs and view of the world and benefits of those teachings in the RVE curriculum. In response to questions Mr. Donnellan explained how there was no traditional space for humanists to meet given there was no worship itself within humanism and there were opportunities to connect with others through Humanists UK and local groups but also more broadly through other activities/groups with other worldviews also. Humanists UK was responsible for its own funding, largely through memberships and donations, and had committed volunteers. In terms of spiritual development in schools it was broader than connecting spirituality to religion with plenty of opportunities to explore the sense of awe, wonder and connection to the natural world, through science, the arts and human experience. The tradition of offering prayers prior to full council meetings was discussed with members choosing whether or not to participate and it was noted that some local authorities had replaced that practice with silent reflection to be more inclusive. In closing, Mr. Donnellan highlighted the increasingly diverse society with different beliefs but many shared goals and aspirations and the importance of people having the freedom to decide for themselves what they believed. RESOLVED that the presentation be received and noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED that the Denbighshire Spring 2026 Newsletter be received, and the local authority be asked to distribute the newsletter to schools.
The RVE Adviser presented the most recent edition of the Denbighshire and Conwy Spring 2026 newsletter, REach (previously circulated) which supported the work of Denbighshire and Conwy’s SAC(RE)s. Articles in the newsletter related to the following – · Understanding Humanism – Luke Donnellan: Humanism was a non-religious philosophical conviction providing a coherent set of beliefs and values for non-religious people to live by and links were provided to online resources for teachers when including humanism in the subject of Religion, Values and Ethics · The National Centre of Religious Education for Wales (NCREW) – Dr. Gareth Evans-Jones: NCREW played a vital role in supporting Religion, Values and Ethics and Religious Studies across Wales. Working bilingually, NCREW was dedicated to strengthening subject knowledge, pedagogical confidence and inclusive practice ensuring teaching and learning remained relevant and rigorous. Details of activities, resources and support available were provided. The RVE Adviser expanded on the articles for members’ benefit. It was timely that the presentation on Humanism had been received before the newsletter which reflected that content. In terms of the second article schools had been informed of the resource library at NCREW which was open to them to utilise and there would be further close working with Dr. Gareth Evans-Jones going forward. The Chair thanked the RVE Adviser for his work in producing the newsletter. RESOLVED that the Denbighshire Spring 2026 Newsletter be received, and the local authority be asked to distribute the newsletter to schools.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED that – (b) the approach to raising awareness of SAC(RE) and work to fill the outstanding vacancies on the Advisory Council as discussed and outlined above be approved, and (b) the update on the Denbighshire SAC(RE) constitution and its approval by full Council be noted.
The RVE Adviser explained that changes to the Denbighshire SAC(RE) constitution had been discussed and agreed in the spring SAC(RE) meeting and it had been recommended that the local authority receive and approve the updated document. Members were advised that the proposed changes to SAC(RE)’s constitution had been presented to full Council on 27 January 2026 and approved. The RVE Adviser had been invited to attend and apologised that he had unintentionally missed the meeting. The constitution had been quickly voted through and the Chair and Councillor Ann Davies felt there had been a missed opportunity to raise further awareness of SAC(RE). However, the Chair had encouraged all members to attend and she urged other councillors to promote attendance within their political groups. Given the difficulties in securing representation on the SAC(RE) and the need to raise awareness, Councillor Emrys Wynne suggested that a request be made to include SAC(RE) as a topic for discussion at a future Council Workshop to which all councillors were invited. It was also agreed that in terms of teacher representation, the Principal Education Manager be asked to assist in filling those vacancies and that the RVE Adviser and Chair take steps to recruit to the vacancies representing religious denominations and non-religious philosophical convictions in line with the SAC(RE) Development Plan 2025 – 2026 (item 8 on agenda). RESOLVED that – (b) the approach to raising awareness of SAC(RE) and work to fill the outstanding vacancies on the Advisory Council as discussed and outlined above be approved, and (b) the update on the Denbighshire SAC(RE) constitution and its approval by full Council be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED that SAC(RE)’s development plan for 2025 – 2027 (renamed from 2025 – 2026) be agreed and work be carried out with the local authority to ensure that the action plan was achievable.
The RVE Adviser presented the draft SAC(RE) Development Plan (previously circulated) for members’ consideration. SAC(RE)’s role was reiterated in the development plan and proposed three priorities for the ongoing work of SAC(RE) for the academic year. The plan also set out the reasons for each priority and proposed areas to develop. The RVE Adviser advised that the actions agreed at the last meeting had been included in the development plan. Whilst all were practical and achievable some may slip over into the autumn term. The Principal Education Manager had assisted in organising training for schools which had been well received and there had been a drive to promote SAC(RE)’s work and raise awareness in schools via the newsletter and other resources, and any further ideas to support schools would be welcomed. Members approved the plan and suggested that given the work would continue into the next academic year that the plan’s timescale be extended from 2025 – 2026 to 2025 – 2027 which would also mirror the remaining council term. RESOLVED that SAC(RE)’s development plan for 2025 – 2027 (renamed from 2025 – 2026) be agreed and work be carried out with the local authority to ensure that the action plan was achievable.
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RESOLVED that the local authority be advised to distribute the support materials (appended to the report) to schools.
The RVE Adviser reported on the phasing out of the legal right for parents to remove their children from the teaching of Religion, Value and Ethics (RVE). To enable SAC(RE) to support schools to effectively manage that change some support materials had been produced for members to consider (copy enclosed). Members were guided through the documentation which included practical steps for responding effectively to parental concerns raised about RVE provision, aiming to build trust and mutual understanding between schools and families together with a letter template for use by schools in response to concerns raised in that regard. The reasons as to why a parent may want to remove their child from the teaching of RVE were highlighted with a focus on determining the parents understanding of the situation and tailoring the response, and the support materials included outlining the parental concern and then the appropriate action to be taken in that circumstance. The letter provided a template for schools to use to clarify RVE in the curriculum. The Welsh Government had their own response and advice on the matter and SAC(RE)’s response would be a local, more comprehensive response. SAC(RE) was supportive of the guidance being shared with schools to help manage parental concerns regarding RVE. Colette Owen and Leah Crimes highlighted the importance of the issue and welcomed the support materials which would be beneficial for schools, particularly given that many concerns were due to a misunderstanding. It was noted that the right of withdrawal remained for Collective Worship and there was some debate as to whether some guidance on that wider issue would be beneficial where the cultural celebration of a festival differed from a religious observance of a festival, e.g. Christmas, carol singing, nativity play, etc. However, there would likely be the need for some legal advice on that issue. SAC(RE) agreed there would be merit in discussing the matter further and it was agreed to add that topic as an agenda item for the next meeting. RESOLVED that the local authority be advised to distribute the support materials (appended to the report) to schools.
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RESOLVED that the minutes of the WASACRE meetings held on 2 July 2025 and 19 November 2025 be received and noted.
· WASACRE Meeting – 2 July 2025 The minutes of the WASACRE meeting held on 2 July 2025 (previously circulated) were submitted for information as they had not been available at the last meeting. · WASACRE Meeting – 19 November 2025 The minutes of the last WASACRE meeting held on 19 November 2025 (previously circulated) were submitted. Jennie Downes and the RVE Adviser reported on the key points arising from the minutes which included the following – - SACRE Annual Reports – work was ongoing to provide some commonality - Mandatory RVE to years 10 and 11 – questions around students being unable to access provision in some schools due to capacity issues - Teacher Voice Project – the findings would be released on 23 March 2026 - NAPfRVE Presentation on GCSE Religious Studies – the current lack of resources for schools to meet mandatory RVE at Key Stage 4 was discussed with SACREs having no power to enforce the requirement and calls were being made to Qualifications Wales for appropriate resources to meet mandatory RVE - Estyn’s Humanities Report would be released on 11 February 2026 · WASACRE Meeting – 19 March 2026 The next WASACRE meeting would be held online at 10am on 19 March 2026 (hosted virtually by Cardiff LA). RESOLVED that the minutes of the WASACRE meetings held on 2 July 2025 and 19 November 2025 be received and noted.
Future meetings of Denbighshire SACRE had been scheduled as follows – · Summer 2026 – 10am Tuesday 2 June 2026 · Autumn 2026 – 10am Wednesday 14 October 2026 The meeting concluded at 11.50 am.
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