A September Department of Education press release said, ‘Millions of pupils returning to the classroom this term are being taught a new forward-thinking, knowledge-rich national curriculum that will give them the knowledge and skills to succeed in modern Britain.’ The new curriculum is designed to raise standards for children aged 5 to 16, especially the poorest, and hopes to provide a broad and balanced education ensuring that all pupils gain core knowledge across a range of key subjects for a better start in life. The curriculum is less prescriptive, allowing teachers to concentrate on what they do best - teach.

Queen Elizabeth II became Queen of England in 1952 and holds the title of Supreme Governor of the Church of England plus a symbolically authoritative position in the Church of Scotland. Her duties are to appoint archbishops, bishops and deans of cathedrals. This seems to make her an Anglican; however, she also holds honorary membership of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. The Queen expresses a deep commitment to the principles of Christianity and during her millennium Christmas address said, ‘To many of us, our beliefs are of fundamental importance. For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ’s words and example.’

The UK will cross a ‘legal and ethical Rubicon’ if the law on assisted suicide in England and Wales is changed, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said. MPs will debate the Assisted Dying Private Members' Bill on Friday 11 September; it proposes to allow doctors to help terminally ill patients to die in some circumstances. Justin Welby said the bill would mean that suicide was ‘actively supported’ instead of being viewed as a tragedy. He and the heads of other Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh groups believe the bill goes beyond merely legitimising suicide to actively supporting it and they have issued a joint letter urging MPs to reject it. The Archbishop said that asking doctors to aid suicide would be a change of monumental proportions both in the law and in the role of doctors. ‘This respect for the lives of others goes to the heart of both our criminal and human rights laws and ought not to be abandoned,’ the archbishop said.

Hundreds of Muslim refugees are converting to Christianity in a Berlin church. Pastor Gottfried Martens has seen his congregation at the evangelical Trinity Church grow from 150 to more than 600 in just two years, describing the number of conversions as a 'miracle.' One of these converts is Mohammed Ali Zonoobi, a carpenter from Shiraz, Iran, who was recently baptised. For Zonoobi and his wife Afsaneh their baptism marks a new beginning. Zonoobi is one of hundreds of mostly Iranian and Afghan asylum seekers who have been baptised at Trinity Church. However, there are concerns that some are not genuine converts, rather professing a Christian faith to boost their chances of staying in the country. Martens acknowledges this possibility, but says that, once in church, most people do engage and that around 90% of converts continue attending after they have been baptised.