A CHURCH minister on a mission to end religious discrimination in the school enrolment process is staging a public meeting.

Stephen Lingwood, minister at Bank Street Unitarian Chapel, heads up The Bolton Fair School Admissions which is calling for all state-funded schools in the town to be open to all children regardless of their religion or belief.

The campaign was launched in the autumn to coincide with the closing date for secondary school admissions in Bolton.

A number of schools in Bolton have admission policies which admit children on grounds of their faith.

The Bolton Fair School Admissions campaign is a diverse group of people, both religious and non-religious, who are united in wanting a cohesive society of one Bolton family.

The campaign has just one aim — to ensure that all state-funded schools in Bolton should be equally open to all children.

Mr Lingwood said: "We want to reach out to Bolton families that have experienced discrimination or difficulties getting into Bolton schools based on religion.

"Has your child been denied a place because of religion? Have you been discriminated against? Do you believe such discrimination is wrong? If so, we want to hear your stories."

He added: "We believe that there are lots of people in this town who are unhappy with the current system, who want inclusive education and an integrated society, and who believe discrimination is wrong.

"We want to reach out to those people and hear their views and stories."

The open meeting, in which people can share their stories about enrolling children into the school of their choice, will take place at Bank Street Unitarian Chapel in the town centre, starting at 3pm on Saturday.

The informal gathering will include refreshments and food.

Mr Lingwood added: "It will be an opportunity to chat, listen to stories and begin to think about how to address these problems."

There will be a child-friendly area in the room but children attending will remain the responsibility of their parents.

The meeting will be held in the hall of the chapel and limited parking will be available in the car park next to the chapel.

For information contact boltonfsa@gmail.com