HC Deb 12 May 1898 vol 57 cc1067-8
MR. CHANNING (Northampton, E.)

I beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education whether it is a fact that several of the 19 Church of England Voluntary schools from whom the aid-grant under the Voluntary Schools Act, 1897, has been withheld, on the ground that they have unreasonably refused to join an association, stated to the Department as their reason for refusing to join an association that they declined to join an ecclesiastical association in an ecclesiastical area; and whether the Department intends to treat this ground of refusal as "unreasonable," for the purposes of the Act, and to compel all Church of England Voluntary schools to join diocesan associations when the managers prefer to join other associations or to remain unassociated?

THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL ON EDUCATION (Sir J. GORST,) Cambridge University

The answer to the first paragraph is in the affirmative. Such schools should, in the opinion of the Committee of Council, have joined the British School Associations which are undenominational.

MR. CHANNING

Will the right honourable Gentleman reply to the second paragraph?

SIR J. GORST

I have said that in our opinion such schools should have joined the British School Associations.

MR. CHANNING

Am I to understand that an objection to an ecclesiastical area is to be treated as unreasonable?

SIR J. GORST

I can only refer the honourable Member to my answer.

MR. J. CARVELL WILLIAMS (Notts, Mansfield)

Is it to be understood that joining an association is an absolute condition for obtaining a grant?

SIR J. GORST

That is not the Act. If the honourable Member will refer to the Act he will find that schools are only disentitled to the grant if their refusal to join an association is, in the opinion of the Department, unreasonable.