It will also need to address the outcome of recent legal decisions which have concluded that non-religious beliefs must be included in RE lessons. Depending on their exact status, faith schools must follow the locally agreed RE curriculum or deliver the subject in accordance with the school’s trust deed.

Conference members will meet several times over the next 18 months with the aim of agreeing the new arrangements by spring 2026, before implementation next autumn.

According to the terms of reference for the conference, which met for the first time this week, its main remit will be to provide “a coherent, well-ordered programme” of RE for pupils aged five to 18.

The syllabus will specify what needs to be taught in each year group to show how knowledge and skills progress at each ‘key stage’ – and set out the expected standards of pupil performance.

Members of the agreed planning conference are drawn from the four groups that make up Lancashire County Council’s standing advisory committee on religious education – namely, the Church of England, other Christian denominations and other religions reflecting the main religious traditions of the area, teaching unions and the local authority itself .

The conference will also recommend how much teaching time the new local RE curriculum will require, although this ultimately remains a decision for the schools themselves. The current suggestion for Lancashire schools is that RE should make up five per cent of their general curriculum.

The law requires RE to be taught in all state schools, including academies and free schools. Lancashire’s new syllabus will automatically apply to maintained schools controlled by the county council, while academies and free schools will be able to choose whether to adopt it or use an RE curriculum from another provider.

Parents can withdraw their children from RE lessons without having to give a reason.

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