Praying for success? Faith schools and school choice in East London

The article discusses research undertaken in East London into perceptions of educational choice amongst a group of middle-class parents drawn from all the main ethnic groups. It focuses on the way in which faith schools are slowly being drawn into the mainstream discourse of choice and how many groups are now beginning to regard such schools as their fall back of choice when it becomes apparent that they are unlikely to get their child into a preferred non-selective secondary school (and increasingly a preferred primary school). This mainstreaming of faith schooling is driven by the attractions to such parents of these schools' ethos, their perception of them as having a favourable social mix of 'people like us' and their generally high record of attainment. It is argued that this increase in demand for faith schools is leading to changes in the recruitment patterns away from primarily faith-based criteria to ones based around a more diffuse (and middle-class) ethos and educational potential. In addition, where such schools once served a wider East London geographical area, there is some evidence that they are now becoming more focused around a local 'catchment area' in ways similar to the same popular non-selective schools to which the same group of parents aspired.

► Faith schooling is changing as competition for high achieving schools sharpens. ► Faith schools are increasingly recruiting from a narrower geographical area. ► Black parents draw on 'faith assets' to evade local 'street culture'. ► The focus on school ethos rather than faith criteria favours the middle classes. ► Changing admissions criteria impact the class and geographical composition of faith schools.