It’s time to ‘scrap the cap’ on faith-based schools admissions

One of the first films I remember watching was Chariots of Fire. We had it recorded on a VCR tape which I watched over and over again during school holidays.

My interest in the film was largely down to the main character. Eric Liddell was an old boy of Eltham College in London, where my late father was a teacher and where I went to junior school. A sculpture of the 1924 Olympic gold medallist stood in the entrance to our sports hall as a reminder of his life and legacy.

Although I was born and raised Catholic, both schools I attended had a Church of England foundation. Eltham was set up for the sons of missionaries. While my secondary school, St Edmund’s in Canterbury, was founded for the children of deceased clergymen. Both schools were instrumental in my life, no doubt thanks to their Christian ethos.

In a world where values and social norms sometimes feel like they are being turned upside down, Church schools are proving a popular choice with parents. Wanting your child to be educated in a way that reflects the beliefs and values of the home is one of the most natural things in the world. It is something which the Catholic Union is working hard to uphold.