Abbreviation CRE Location London | Formation 1987 Region served UK | |
Legal status Non-profit organisation Purpose Educational standards and parental choice in the UK | ||
The Campaign for Real Education is a right-wing pressure group in the United Kingdom.
Contents
History
The CRE was established in 1987 by a group of 14 parents and teachers, although it was effectively a one-man organisation led by Nick Seaton, who ran it from a bedroom in his home near York. It gained national attention after intervening in a dispute at Lewes Priory School over whether pupils should sit O Levels or GCSEs. Two teachers that pressed for students to sit the O Level were sacked, with one of them, Chris McGovern, later becoming the CRE's chairman.
Views
The group campaigns to "press for higher standards and more parental choice in state education," and supports grammar schools. Among its concerns are truancy, low educational and behavioural standards, mismanagement of school funding, and what it describes as "faddish" teaching methods such as child-centred learning. It opposes the teaching of sociology and politics, as well as anti-racism and anti-sexism campaigns.