Mission review has gone through the School Inspectorate's reviews, compiled media revelations about abuses at religious free schools and interviewed a number of former students.
See the series: "School for God's sake" - SVT Play
When staff at student health are members of the congregation that runs the school, it can have serious consequences for the students who need to talk to someone about what scares them in the congregation's message, says psychotherapist Helena Löfgren.
- If the school counselor is also part of the congregation and the belief system that the children encounter at school, they have nowhere to turn.
The curator becomes another pair of eyes from the congregation that sees the student, and trusting then becomes very difficult.
Illegal to register belief
How many of the denominational schools where the health staff are part of the congregation cannot be said, because the School Inspectorate does not check religious affiliation.
Mission review has looked at three schools where the problem exists.
Immanuel School in Borlänge did not have a school counselor until a few years ago, but the students had to turn to the school nurse.
She was also a sex education teacher and a member of the congregation that ran the school.
According to former students, the school nurse must have compared people who have sexual experiences to an increasingly worn deck of cards.
She herself denies this statement.
"The school inspectorate puts adults' rights before children's"
Also at Hälleberg School in Ljungskile, the curator is an active member of the congregation, which the School Inspectorate drew attention to in its review.
Six months later, the school got the green light even though the situation with the counselor was the same.
The School Inspectorate does not want to comment on the case further, but points out that it is illegal to register people's beliefs.
Helena Löfgren is critical of the School Inspectorate's actions:
- There are two rights here that collide, the school counselor's right to freedom of religion and the child's right according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to be free from religion.
The School Inspectorate chooses, without problematizing it, the rights of adults over those of children.
Be aware of the problem
In the interviews with the School Inspectorate, it appears that the staff at Hälleberg School themselves understand the problem that student health staff are active members of the congregation that runs the school.
The management at Immanuelskolan responds to the Task Review that their employees do not need to declare their parish affiliation.