Recently, one of my students gifted me a copy of The Myth of Sisyphus. In an amusing exchange, he said that he considered teachers to have a great deal of similarity with the cursed Greek King (not bad for a year 8). With no conviction to disagree, I of course responded, yet ‘one must imagine Sisyphus happy.’ I then pointed towards the REQM Gold badge icon on the headed letter paper in my hand.

As teachers of RE, we work incredibly hard to plan excellent curriculums and secure good outcomes. Perhaps the task becomes more palatable when accompanied by celebration, recognition, and yes…a badge for your headed letter paper (SLT very much loves the latter). The REQM, from the process to the award itself, is an amazing experience that energizes RE in your school, raises its profile, and bolsters its quality.

However, while completing the annual report for my local SACRE in Oldham (many of us have a few boulders to roll), I noted that only one school had completed the REQM. I thought this was a real shame and on further investigation found that some areas across the UK have a deficit of the quality mark. This is not to say that quality RE is absent in these areas, but that there are barriers to engaging with it. One of these is without a doubt cost. Though the £495 price tag is very fair for what you get, and all teachers can access the quality standards matrix for free, some departments simply don’t have the budget or wider school support to receive such funding. This got me thinking…

Pennine Learning, the advisory team here in West Yorkshire, have previously experimented with an ‘RE Merit’ awarded by Oldham SACRE. An RE Merit recognizes good quality RE, using similar criteria to the REQM Bronze award (in our context, we link closely with the Locally Agreed Syllabus). Departments complete a quality matrix, share curriculum documentation and evidence, and then benefit from an online review or in person school review. Schools who have received the RE merit are encouraged to undertake the REQM, supported by a wealth of evidence and experience. And yes, you guessed it…we commissioned a set of badges to be used on headed letter paper.

From this we have developed a pilot to run this innovation more widely, with an aim of increasing REQM numbers. Where departments gain the RE Merit, we are hopeful that funding for the REQM will become more readily available in their schools.  This has been the case in my most recent visit, where an academy in Oldham commented ‘We are now confident following the support of Jake and the SACRE Merit, that we will work towards REQM.’

SACRE can be an underused tool. Often, the interplay between SACRE and schools is limited to commissioning the Locally Agreed Syllabus and writing reports. But it can do more!

In future Oldham SACRE plan to offer two free spaces a year and involve more SACRE members in the process of reviewing and awarding. Ultimately we want to see more schools sporting the REQM. After all, it is our Sisyphean mission to strive for enhanced religious literacy and a consistently high-quality experience of Religion and Worldviews for all of our students.