To ask the Minister of Education for an update on the work of the Religious Education Advisory Committee.

The Religious Education Advisory Committee was established in 2006 to develop guidance and materials for schools to support the introduction of the Religious Education Core Syllabus. By 2019 it was considered that the work of the Committee had been completed and it was stood down.

In 2022, the Committee was reconvened. Between October 2022 and March 2023, the reconvened Committee, chaired by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA), met on four occasions to develop a draft Terms of Reference and discuss the membership, remit and scope of the group. This includes discussion around to what extent CCEA has the authority to extend the membership or present proposals to do so.

At present the Committee is not meeting pending the outcome of the Appeal in Judicial Review Case 87 (A minor) which was heard on 25 and 26 October 2023.

I am, however, advised that individual members or groups within the Committee are taking forward some work around the role of Religious Education in the curriculum. Specifically, they are considering an agreed definition of what Religious Education is and assessing its contribution to the curriculum including to cross-curricular skills and thinking skills and personal capabilities.

The work of the Committee will recommence once the outcome of the Appeal is known.