Recent research suggests that more than a quarter of England's secondary schools do not offer religious education, despite the law saying they must do so. The National Association for RE Teachers, which obtained the unpublished official data under the Freedom of Information Act, says that missing the subject leaves pupils unprepared for modern life. But the main union for secondary head teachers said many schools covered religious issues in other lessons through conferences, citizenship lessons or assemblies. By law, RE must be taught by all state-funded schools in England, with detailed syllabuses agreed locally. The data showed that 26% of secondary schools were not offering RE lessons; 34% of academies were not offering RE to 11 to 13-year-olds; and almost half were not offering it to 14 to 16-year-olds. As more schools become academies, the problem could escalate.