Version: 2.1
SCM-PR-021: Religious Instruction in School Hours
Identify processes, responsibilities and procedures for religious leaders or accredited representatives of a religious denomination or society to gain entry into a particular State school to deliver an authorised program of instruction to students who are members or have parental consent to attend such program.
Statement of intent
Legislation provides that within a specific time period each week approved instructors, who are religious leaders or accredited representatives of a faith group, are able to gain right-of-entry into a State school to provide religious instruction to students to develop and support particular beliefs, values and attitudes. These provisions do not extend to students in preparatory year.
Religious instruction from approved instructors of a faith group is facilitated when there:
Local arrangements for delivery of religious instruction by faith group to relevant students are made as either:
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a separate program; or
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a cooperative program.
Arrangements may be made at primary and special schools for delivery of selected Bible lessons within school. The selected lessons are identified for each year level.
Information from parents is essential to enable a principal to place a student in any program of instruction provided by approved instructors of faith groups. Parents retain right at all times to determine if their child is to be a participant of either religious instruction or selected Bible lessons when they occur in local school.
Responsibilities
Gaining approval to provide religious instruction as a religious leader Principal:
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Provide relevant information to religious leader or religious authority wanting to determine if faith group has students who are members in attendance at school.
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Issue a
letter of approval (new window) 49k 
when faith group is eligible to have right-of-entry to school and religious leader can be an approved instructor.
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Advise approved instructors of faith groups of school procedures and actions needed to comply with legislative provisions for religious instruction and with Education Queensland polices.
Gaining approval to provide religious instruction as an accredited representative Principal:
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Consider written submissions
requesting approval (new window) 46k for an accredited representative of a faith group to provide religious instruction in State school.
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Agree to an accredited representative of a faith group to become an
approved instructor (new window) 49k and issue a letter of approval when students who are members of faith group of accredited representative are in attendance.
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Retain record of all approved instructors at school.
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Monitor at beginning of each year that only instructors of faith groups with students in attendance at school retain approval to deliver religious instruction.
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Issue identification card each year for each approved instructor at school.
Establishing program/s of religious instruction in a school Principal:
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Students who are members of each faith group, participating in cooperative arrangement, are in attendance at school
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Authorised program agreed to by participating religious leaders is available and made known.
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Provide each local coordinator with necessary data (that is, relevant numbers of students at each year level) to plan and schedule delivery of their program at school.
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Inform coordinators of confidentiality requirements regarding the use of data given.
Parent notice Principal:
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Inform all parents at enrolment, and on request, of details of programs of religious instruction provided at school and request completion of
Parent Notice form.
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Provide parent/s with a copy of completed Parent Notice.
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Inform parent/s who provide/s notice of a religion that their child will be placed into program of that faith group (if available). In situations when such program is delivered in a cooperative arrangement inform parent/s of all other participating faith groups.
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Inform parent/s who omit/s notice of a religion, or notified religion is unavailable, of all programs of religious instruction provided at school.
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Advise all parents who have identified their child as a member of a faith group providing religious instruction at the school, or consented to placement of their child into a program of religious instruction, that their consent will remain operational unless they issue a written notice of withdrawal for their child.
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Seek consent of parent/s to pass identifying information about student to religious instructor.
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Advise all parents of alternative activities provided for students who do not participate in religious instruction.
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Provide parents with contact details of relevant local coordinator for a program of religious instruction when and as appropriate.
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Inform all parents promptly through newsletter of all changes relating to a faith group ceasing or commencing participation in either single or cooperative arrangements for religious instruction.
Allocating a student to a program of instruction Principal:
Facilitating religious instruction Principal:
Approval to Deliver Program of Instruction
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Receive and retain
Capacity to Instruct (new window) 60k form from each coordinator at commencement of each school year. (It is responsibility of each local coordinator to retain currency of information and resubmit form as necessary).
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Arrange for continued monitoring of currency and carrying of suitability cards under
Working with Children Check 
requirements and school issued
approved instructor identification for all persons who enter school for religious instruction.
Time for instruction
- Allocate time for religious instruction that does not exceed one hour per week, or an amount of time that is equivalent (to the total of one hour per week) at another time during the term and make known to all coordinators of religious instruction programs.
- Require approved instructors sign visitors' book when entering and leaving school site.
School program and resources
- Monitor school activities offered to students not attending religious instruction so students who attend religious instruction do not experience educational disadvantage.
- Allocate separate learning spaces for each program of religious instruction and school activities attended by students.
- Attend to staff roster in order to maintain duty-of-care of students attending programs of instruction and conduct of alternative school activities for students who are non-participants.
- Make available to all coordinators relevant policies of Education Queensland (those outlined in the Related procedures section) which are obligatory for all volunteers providing programs to students.
- Inform coordinator and approved instructors that faith group/s' publications used for instruction are not to be accessible for other students. Assist with separate storage if resources are available.
Management of program in school
- Direct promptly to relevant coordinator all parental queries, concerns or complaints relating to religious instruction in a single or cooperative arrangement or its implementation.
- Publish information about all religious instruction programs provided at the school on the school's website (new window) 40k and in the school's prospectus.
Selected Bible Lessons Principal: (primary and special schools only)
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Understand that a program of selected Bible lessons is optional, at discretion of principal, in primary and special schools.
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Make available a reading plan of selected lessons for each year level for use by teachers who agree to deliver the lessons if program is introduced.
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Advise teachers that readings are not to include any teaching of distinctive tenets or doctrines of a denomination, society or sect.
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Inform parents when lessons occur in school and advise parents of their option to request that their child not attend.
Applying for approval to provide religious instruction in a State school Religious leaders:
- Have knowledge of legislation for religious instruction.
- Authorise program of instruction or know what program of instruction is authorised by faith group.
- Determine criteria necessary (for example, training, qualifications etc) for accrediting a representative.
- Establish arrangements that all representatives they accredit to become approved instructors have successfully completed and have been issued with a Blue Card prior to approved instructor's entry into a school.
- Request in writing that letters of approval for each accredited representative who is to be an approved instructor (new window) 46k of faith group be given by principal at each school visited.
Delivering a program of religious instruction at a school Religious leaders:
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Decide if they will voluntarily join with other approved faith groups and use a cooperative arrangement to deliver a program at a school.
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Understand that religious leader has responsibility for approved instructors of faith group.
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Provide school with name and contact details of person who will be local coordinator appointed to school to implement and manage program on behalf of faith group.
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Provide or establish a process for coordinators to gain all necessary materials and resources for program of religious instruction.
Cooperative
- Prepare a cooperative agreement and submit to principal with Signatories of Cooperative (new window) 67k on prescribed form when this arrangement is adopted at a school.
- Accept only faith groups with right of entry to school to be signatories of cooperative agreement.
Coordinators:
- After necessary consultation complete Capacity Form (new window) 60k to give to principal at commencement of each year and provide revised versions as needed.
- Gain approval of religious leader/s for the faith group/s' authorised program of instruction and all other materials used and distributed to students during religious instruction prior to it being used in school/s.
- Advise approved instructors that any materials other than authorised program distributed to students during religious instruction requires consent of principal.
- Enable principal to sight on request materials used to undertake a program of religious instruction to assess that content does not contravene legislation or departmental policy.
- Advise instructors of storage arrangements for materials used for religious instruction.
- Inform principal if parents are to be advised of any costs associated with purchasing of materials for a program of religious instruction.
- Respond to concerns or requests for information about program and its delivery.
Approved Instructors:
- Deliver only program authorised by faith group being represented.
- Inform coordinator of all additional materials being used during religious instruction prior to distributing to students to determine if there is religious leader and principal consent.
- Retain letter of approval issued from each school visited to deliver religious instruction.
- Ensure both Working with Children Check and school approved instructor cards are current, carried and show on request.
- Sign school's Visitors' Register each time school attended.
- Follow advice and directives of relevant coordinators for delivery of program at each school visited.
- Follow directives of principal regarding school protocols and procedures at each school visited.
Contacts
For information on religious instruction in school hours, contact:
Document information
Approval record: 06/120751
Date of implementation: 2007-01-25 Date of publication: 2007-01-25 Date to be reviewed: 2008-11-05 This procedure replaces: ^ Top of page
Chapter 5 Section 76 http://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/LEGISLTN/CURRENT/E/EducGenPrA06.pdf
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