Hampshire County Council

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Wards: 76

Committees: 49

Meetings (2026): 57

Meetings (2025): 155

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Meeting

Name: Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education
Start: 2026-01-27T14:00:00Z
End: 2026-01-27T18:00:00Z
Location: Ashburton Hall, EII Court, Winchester

Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education - Hampshire

Agenda

Published

Minutes

Published

Meeting Times

Scheduled Time

Start:
Tuesday, 27th January 2026
2:00 PM

End:
Tuesday, 27th January 2026
6:00 PM

Meeting Status

Status:
Confirmed

Date:
27 Jan 2026

Location:
Ashburton Hall, EII Court, Winchester

Meeting Attendees

Chairman

Councillor Chris Donnelly

Conservative

Present, as expected

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Conservative Deputy

Councillor Juliet Henderson

Conservative

Not required

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Committee Member

Chris Hughes

Group A - Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Sheikh Fazle Abbas Datoo

Group A - Muslim

Apologies

Committee Member

Yasmeen Hussain

Group A - Muslim

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Father John Chandler

Group A - Roman Catholic Church

Absent

Deputy

Captain Victoria Crawford

Group A - The Salvation Army

Not required

Committee Member

Maria Ackland

Group B - Church of England

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Jeff Williams

Group B - Church of England

Apologies

Deputy

Sue Bowen

Group B - Church of England

Not required

Deputy

Robert Sanders

Group B - Church of England

Present, as substitute

Committee Member

Maureen Barnes

Group C - Hampshire Teachers' Liaison Panel

Apologies

Committee Member

Carson Elday

Group C - Hampshire Teachers' Liaison Panel

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Rachel Jackson

Group C - Hampshire Teachers' Liaison Panel

Absent

Co-opted Member

Gill Heron

Co-opted Member - Academy Schools

Absent

Co-opted Member

Rhiannon Love

Co-opted Member - Higher Education

Absent

Co-opted Member

Alasdair Richardson

Co-opted Member - Higher Education

Apologies

Liberal Democrats Deputy

Councillor Jackie Porter

Liberal Democrat

Not required

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Committee Member

Baha'i Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Baha'i

Not required

Committee Member

Baptist Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Baptist

Not required

Committee Member

Buddhist Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Buddhist

Not required

Committee Member

Hindu Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Hindu

Not required

Committee Member

Chris Robinson

Group A - Humanists

Present, as expected

Deputy

Mary Wallbank

Group A - Humanists

Not required

Committee Member

Danny Habel

Group A - Jewish Community

Apologies

Committee Member

Revd Peter Rayson

Group A - Methodist

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Sikh Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Sikh

Not required

Committee Member

Councillor Steven Broomfield

Conservative

Present, as expected

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Committee Member

Jane Kelly

Group B - Church of England

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Group C - Vacancy

Group C - Hampshire Teachers' Liaison Panel

Not required

Committee Member

Society of Friends Representative - Vacancy

Group A - Society of Friends

Not required

Committee Member

Rhian Jones

Group A - The Salvation Army

Present, as expected

Committee Member

Mary Fair

Group A - United Reform Church

Apologies

Committee Member

Group B - Vacancy

Group B - Church of England

Not required

Agenda

1 Apologies for Absence

To receive any apologies for absence.

Minutes Apologies were received from Mary Fair, Fazle Abbas, Jeff Williams, Cllr Mummalaneni, Maureen Barnes, Danny Habel and Alasdair Richardson.

2 Declarations of Interest

All Members who believe they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting must declare that interest and, having regard to Part 3 Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members’ Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore all Members with a Personal Interest in a matter being considered at the meeting should consider, having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 4 of the Code, whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, consider whether it is appropriate to leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

No declarations were made.

Minutes Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter considered at the meeting they must declare that interest at the time of the relevant debate and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3, Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Personal Interest in a matter being considered at the meeting they considered whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, considered whether it was appropriate to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

3 Minutes of the Previous Meeting

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting.

Attachments:

Document Printed minutes 03112025 1430 Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education 19 Jan 2026

Minutes The minutes of the previous meeting were confirmed as an accurate record.

4 Deputations

To receive any deputations notified under Standing Order 12.

Minutes There were no deputations.

5 Chairman's Announcements

To receive any Chairman’s announcements.

Minutes The Chairman noted that it was Holocaust Memorial Day which is held every year internationally on 27 January. He noted that the theme for 2026 was Bridging Generations and directed Members’ to further information available from the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust.

The Chairman was sad to announce the passing of Jennifer Zeffertt who had previously served on the Hampshire SACRE. Members sent their condolences to Jennifer’s family.

Members were reminded of the Agreed Syllabus Conference meeting which was scheduled for Monday 16 March 2026 and encouraged all to attend.

The Chairman acknowledged the contribution of Councillor Irish who noted that he would not be standing at the 2026 election and, as such, this would be his last SACRE meeting.

6 Membership Update (verbal)

To receive an update on SACRE membership.

Minutes A verbal update on current SACRE vacancies was provided. It was noted that work was ongoing in liaising with external bodies to seek representation.

RESOLVED:

That the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education notes the update.

7 Monitoring Group

To receive a report from the Director of Children’s Services regarding the activities and discussions of the monitoring group in relation to the monitoring of RE and the implementation of Living Difference IV.

Attachments:

Document Monitoring Group Report January 2026.2 19 Jan 2026

Minutes The Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education received a report from the Director of Children’s Services providing an update on the activities of the Monitoring Group at its recent meeting on the 4 December 2025.

Members discussed the implications of incorporating Religious Education (RE) into the National Curriculum and the potential effects on teaching and learning. They highlighted that improving outcomes for young learners relies heavily on engaging all children and adopting inclusive pedagogical approaches.

The Committee also considered the new Ofsted framework introduced in 2025. Members noted that the accompanying report card system had so far offered a broader, more general overview of performance, rather than providing the detailed, targeted feedback seen in previous frameworks.

RESOLVED:

That the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education notes the report.

8 Key National and Local RE Matters

To receive a report from the Director of Children’s Services on developments in relation to the work of the Religious Education Council, RE Research and other key national and local RE matters.

Attachments:

Document National and Local Matters Report January 2026.2 19 Jan 2026

Minutes The Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education received a report from the Director of Children’s Services setting out key national and local RE matters.

Members noted the programme of events and webinars offered by the National Association of SACREs (NASACRE), along with the booking link provided at section 7 of the report. Particular attention was drawn to the forthcoming webinar with Dr?Vanessa Ogden, on Monday 2?March?2026, focusing on the future of Religious Education and the continuing importance of SACREs. Members drafted a series of questions for Dr?Ogden, which were recorded by officers in preparation for the event.

The Committee also discussed the Department for Education’s confirmation that the Initial Teacher Training bursary for Religious Education would be withdrawn from 2026/27. Officers agreed to gather information on the eligibility criteria attached to the bursary and to explore whether any collaborative work was taking place with local colleges and universities to support and encourage new RE teachers into the profession.

RESOLVED:

That the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education notes the report.

9 Agreed Syllabus Update (verbal)

To receive an update on work towards the Agreed Syllabus Conference looking ahead to the meeting on 16 March 2026.

Minutes A verbal update was provided on preparations for the forthcoming Agreed Syllabus Conference (ASC) scheduled for Monday 16?March?2026.

Members were reminded that a light?touch review of the existing Living Difference IV syllabus was underway. They were updated on the work completed to date, which focused on identifying any outdated or inaccurate elements within the current syllabus. It was noted that the overall content of the syllabus was expected to remain largely unchanged, reflecting the positive feedback it had received.

Members also noted that a short written summary would be circulated to SACRE in advance of the ASC meeting, outlining any proposed amendments to the syllabus for consideration on 16?March.

RESOLVED:

That the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education notes the update.

Previous Meetings

27th Jan 2026