“General Synod is hardly representing the Church of England if it doesn’t include a certain number of uncooperative sods, who often dominate at the local level” – Dr Francis Young
In Autumn 2026, elections are taking place to select General Synod members for the next quinquennium. The Church of England is “looking for candidates who represent the whole range of people and churches in the Church of England, particularly those whose background may currently be underrepresented”.
Antisemitic incidents
On Wednesday, the Community Security Trust published a report on Antisemitic Incidents January-June 2026. The Trust recorded 1,926 antisemitic incidents across the UK in the first half of 2026: the second-highest total ever reported to CST in the first six months of any year, exceeded only by the 2,019 incidents recorded from January to June 2024. This is an increase of 21% from the 1,598 incidents recorded in the first half of 2025.
Scotland: closure of Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme
On 8 July, Tim Eagle MSP (Highlands and Islands, Con) lodged a written question asking the Scottish Government “what assessment it has made of the impact of the closure of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme on listed places of worship in Scotland, including any additional costs faced by congregations undertaking repairs and maintenance”.
On Wednesday, Màiri McAllan, Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, answered as follows:
“The Scottish Government recognises the concerns from both faith groups and heritage organisations following the decision of the UK Government to close the UK-wide Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme. As soon as we were aware of this decision, we strongly encouraged the UK Government to rethink their policy position.
We have engaged with key stakeholders and Historic Environment Scotland to understand the implications for Scotland’s listed places of worship. The previous scheme enabled eligible organisations to recover the equivalent of VAT incurred on repairs and maintenance, and its closure may increase costs for congregations undertaking essential works. We are aware that many places of worship face financial pressures, and we continue to assess potential options for support.”
Hmmm.
Anti-Zionism as a protected belief: Miller again
Regular readers may recall the case of Dr David Miller, who was Professor of Political Sociology at Bristol from 2018 to October 2021 and who was dismissed after complaints about his conduct, including what was said to be his use of antisemitic language. In Dr David Miller v University of Bristol [2024] ET 1400780/2022, he argued that his “political Zionism” was a protected belief under the Grainger criteria, and the Employment Tribunal upheld his claim for unfair dismissal, though his claims of harassment and direct discrimination failed. We noted the case here.
The University appealed, and on Tuesday the Employment Appeal Tribunal handed down its judgment, dismissing the appeal almost in its entirety. We hope to post a full note later in the week.
Change to the definition of regulated activity with children
From 1 September 2026, there is a change to the definition of regulated activity with children. The law on regulated activity with children is changing, and the current rule about the supervision of paid staff and volunteers carrying out specific activities with children will be removed from the legal definition. This is due to changes made by the Crime and Policing Act 2026, and many church activities which rely upon volunteers will be affected. Initially, the changes will affect those within the organisation responsible for the regulated activity.
The changes mean that some people will be in regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026 when they were not before, because they were sufficiently supervised by someone else. This will apply if they do the work often enough, or overnight. Regulated activity is work that a barred person must not do. It is against the law for: a barred person to engage in regulated activity; or someone to allow a barred person to do regulated activity.
The change only impacts regulated activity with children. No change is being made to the definition of regulated activity with adults. From 1 September 2026, the former supervision rule will no longer apply; those who teach, train, instruct, care for or supervise children often enough or overnight will be in regulated activity with children even if someone else supervises them.
This means that an organisation will be able to ask for an Enhanced DBS check for its children workforce with a Children’s Barred List check. The work is done often enough, or overnight, if it occurs: on more than 3 days in any 30-day period or once overnight between 2 am and 6 am.
The Department for Education’s guidance on supervision in schools, colleges and childcare settings is available here.
And finally…
Defend Our Juries reported that last week, Bristol police arrested a 16-year-old boy under the Terrorism Act for holding a sign with the words “PLASTICENE ACTION GROUP” on it. The comment on X/Twitter was: “For anyone who’s unsure, it is not yet illegal to mention plasticine action, Morph, Wallace & Gromit or Chicken Run”.