What is an education in religion and worldviews?
The Religion and Worldviews approach is an academically rigorous way of teaching religious education in schools, developed in collaboration with academics, faith and belief leaders, and teachers. Drawing on theology, philosophy, history, sociology and literature, it supports schools to improve their RE provision by better aligning it with how the subject is studied at university.
At its heart, pupils study:
- what religions and worldviews are, and the different scholarly disciplines used to study them;
- the authentic experiences of religious and non-religious people — how real individuals and communities navigate questions of meaning, identity, belonging and purpose in their everyday lives;
- the richness and diversity of both organised and personal worldviews in Britain and around the world;
- the fundamental concepts and big ideas that underpin different religious and non-religious responses to life’s questions;
- the human quest for meaning — preparing young people for life in a diverse world and giving them space to reflect on and take responsibility for their own personal worldview.
The terms ‘religion’ and ‘worldviews’ are explained in further FAQs below.
Learn more about the Commission on RE (2018)
What is Religion, Values and Ethics (RVE) in the curriculum in Wales?
The Welsh Government has provided the following answer to this question: “From 2022 Religious education in Wales will be renamed ‘Religion, values and ethics’ to more accurately reflect the broad scope of the subject’s pluralistic requirement, and position within the Humanities Area of Learning and Experience.”
Why is it important for children to have an education in Religion and Worldviews?
Young people today encounter religious and non-religious ideas constantly — through social media, through their communities, through global events. They need an education that helps them make sense of those experiences in an academically rigorous, thoughtful and respectful way.
Giving young people the scholarly tools to explore difference has never been more important in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world. Employers value confident, articulate communicators who can work effectively with people from all walks of life — and this is precisely what a high-quality education in Religion and Worldviews develops.
A national survey conducted by Savanta ComRes in summer 2021 found that 65% of UK adults felt an education in Religion and Worldviews has an impact on people’s ability to understand each other in wider society. An Ofsted Research Review (May 2021) confirmed that the subject is vital in preparing pupils to engage in a diverse and complex multi-religious and multi-secular society.
Young people themselves are clear about its value — it increases their knowledge and understanding, provides global and historical perspectives, supports the development of positive values, and helps them make sense of the world around them.
Learn more about pupils’ views.
Why does RE need to change?
People who design syllabuses for this subject face several challenges.
Many schools recognise that the way religious education has traditionally been taught no longer reflects the world their students live in, and are looking to update their practice.
The existing ‘world religions approach’ — which began in the 1970s — has increasingly been criticised for two key reasons:
- Content selection has become unmanageable, with a tendency to present a simplified, ‘normalised’ view of worldviews that doesn’t reflect their true diversity, divergence and complexity. This has been highlighted in the 2021 Ofsted Research Review.
- It can lack inclusivity — alienating pupils who don’t come from religious family backgrounds, or those from specific traditions who don’t recognise their own experience in what is taught.
The Religion and Worldviews approach addresses these challenges. Drawing on theology, philosophy, history, sociology and literature, it provides a coherent, well-developed framework that supports teachers to select content that is both academically rigorous and personally inspiring for their classroom — raising the quality of RE provision across the country.
What is meant by the study of ‘religion’?
This means pupils explore the nature of religion itself — as a concept, an experience, and something of central importance in human life. Pupils might ask: “What is a religion? Is it different from a faith? Do we all mean the same thing when we talk about religion?”
As pupils encounter different worldviews, their understanding of religion deepens and develops. They learn that religion has both positive and complex dimensions and can be open to many interpretations. They also gain an understanding of the different scholarly disciplines used to study it — historical, philosophical, sociological and theological.
What is a worldview?
A worldview is the lens through which each of us sees and makes sense of the world — our beliefs, values, convictions and assumptions that shape how we think and live. A worldview is a person’s way of understanding, experiencing and responding to the world. It is an approach to life. Everyone inhabits a worldview, whether they have thought about it consciously or not.
Some worldviews are deeply personal, drawing on both religious and non-religious ideas. Others are organised traditions with long histories, texts and communities. Understanding the authentic nature of belief — in both its individual and organised forms — is at the heart of the Religion and Worldviews approach.
The Commission on RE (2018) defines a worldview as: “A person’s way of understanding, experiencing and responding to the world” — encompassing how a person understands the nature of reality and their place within it, and likely to be shaped by and to shape their beliefs, values, behaviours, experiences, identities and commitments.
Learn more about the concept of worldview.
How can an education in religion and worldviews prepare pupils for adult life?
The Religion and Worldviews approach places young people at the heart of an academic enquiry into the different religious and non-religious responses to life’s big questions — why are we here, how should we live, what is right and wrong? Using a range of scholarly disciplines, it develops the written and oral skills young people need to engage thoughtfully and respectfully with difference.
The result is confident, articulate young people who are ready for adult life and work. They can encounter different ideas, engage in respectful discussion on complex moral and philosophical issues, and work effectively with people from all walks of life. In a national survey conducted in 2021, 63% of employees said it was important to understand other people’s beliefs in the workplace.
This approach also allows young people to build constructive, cohesive and meaningful relationships with others who think and live differently – not just in Britain but around the world.
Will this approach mean children learn less about individual religions?
No. The Religion and Worldviews approach is designed to be scholarly and knowledge-rich. For young people to engage in genuine academic dialogue about religious and non-religious responses to life’s big questions, they must have a thorough understanding of those ideas — their history, their texts, their communities, and their matters of central importance.
As Ofsted (2021) puts it: “High-quality RE curriculums do not require excessive content but contain collectively enough substantive knowledge to enable pupils to recognise the diverse and changing religious and non-religious traditions of the world.”
Schools retain flexibility in how many traditions they include. Some schools with a religious character may choose to focus on one or two specific traditions. Others may follow their local agreed syllabus, including Christianity, the other principal religions represented in Great Britain, and non-religious worldviews as set out in the legal framework.
Will this approach mean that almost anything can be included in RE?
No. When the Commission on RE recommended this approach, they also specified a clear statement of entitlement that defines the scope of what pupils should learn. See page 10 of the executive summary.
Is Religious Education the same as Religion and Worldviews?
Yes and no. The name for the subject set out in law remains Religious Education (The Education Act 1996, School Standards and Framework Act 1998) — so in a legal sense they refer to the same subject, and nothing in the law has changed.
In practice, Religion and Worldviews represents a shift in approach — moving away from the traditional world religions model towards one that is more academically rigorous, authentic and learner-focused. Some schools may choose to keep the name ‘Religious Education’ while adopting a worldviews approach in their teaching.
What is the difference between a World Religions approach and Religion and Worldviews Approach?
A key insight of the Commission on RE (2018) is that everyone has a worldview. The Religion and Worldviews approach reflects this — recognising the complex, diverse and changing nature of both organised traditions and personal worldviews, and the diversity that exists within them as well as between them.
Rather than replacing the best elements of the world religions approach — such as careful, respectful representation of people’s beliefs and practices — the Religion and Worldviews approach builds on them, framing the subject with a new emphasis on understanding the importance of worldview in all human life and grounding study in the authentic experiences of real people and communities.
Why is there a recommendation that Religious Education is placed in the National Curriculum? Is the new subject going to be called “Religion and Worldviews?
Religious Education has been a compulsory subject in English schools since the 1944 Education Act — but it has never been part of the National Curriculum. Instead, each local authority has determined what is taught through locally “agreed syllabuses,” resulting in deeply uneven provision across the country.
The Government commissioned an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, led by Professor Becky Francis, which published its final report in November 2025. The report stated plainly that “RE’s importance is not currently reflected in its standing in the curriculum,” and recommended that RE “should be moved to the national curriculum to improve access to high-quality provision and to prevent further diminishment.”
To achieve this, the Secretary of State has asked the sector to establish an independent Task and Finish Group — made up of representatives from faith bodies, secular groups, and experts from the teaching and wider education sector — to develop a draft RE curriculum. The process is envisaged in four stages: building consensus, drafting and testing content, reviewing the legislative framework, and then implementation with national guidance and professional development
It is important to understand that “Religion and Worldviews” is not a proposal for an entirely new and different subject. It is a way of conceptualising how RE is taught.