Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 October 2023
29. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Education how she intends progressing separation of church and State in the education system; the funding that was provided for this in the Budget; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45016/23]
View answerThe Programme for Government reflects the Government’s objective of continuing to expand the plurality of schools to reflect the full breadth of society. It sets out that “students of all religions and none should have access to education, regardless of their belief system”.
The Programme for Government commitments in this area include:
• “Achieve the target of at least 400 multi-denominational primary schools by 2030, to improve parental choice”;
• “Expand and prioritise the transfer of viable schools to Community National Schools”;
• ”Work with communities to ensure the provision of clear, non-partisan information on the preparation for, and the consequences of, the divestment process and to respond to queries raised”.
In recent years there has been considerable progress towards increasing the numbers of multi-denominational primary schools. There are 168 primary schools with a multi-denominational or inter-denominational ethos.
For historical reasons, most primary schools are State-aided parish schools, with the local Bishop as patron, although this pattern is changing. It is recognised, including by the Catholic patrons, that more diverse provision is required to cater for our changing society.
The Schools Reconfiguration for Diversity process, supporting transfers of schools to multi-denominational patrons in response to the wishes of local communities, has been developed in order to accelerate the delivery of multi-denominational schools. When a school transfers from the patronage of one patron to another, the school remains open with the same roll number and operating from the same school property. All State-funded primary schools follow a common national curriculum and are subject to the same Department rules and regulations.
In March 2022 I announced that arrangements were being put in place in a number of towns and areas of cities that had no multi-denominational primary schools to identify potential schools and to engage with school authorities, school staff and the school communities with a view to agreeing on a transfer of patronage and change of ethos, where there was sufficient demand for this.
The engagement at local level across the pilot areas was largely concluded at the end of Q1 2023. Two schools, Cornamaddy National School in Athlone and St. Enda’s Primary School in Whitefriar Street, Dublin 8, have transferred from Catholic patronage to the local Education and Training Board, becoming multi-denominational community national schools. My Department is hopeful that there will be a number of other transfers of patronage and change of ethos to multi-denominational in the short term.
As this was a pilot process it was always intended to review its operation and examine any lessons. The review is looking at the engagement with the school communities as well as taking on board the views of the facilitators and the feedback from parents and staff of schools involved in the pilot. My Department is engaging with representatives of the Catholic patrons and representatives of the main multi-denominational patron bodies, as part of this work.
The review is considering any lessons, including the aspects that worked well, the elements that can be improved upon and the process for providing multi-denominational options for parents in other towns and areas of the country going forward.
Following consultation with relevant stakeholders, it is intended that the review of the structured engagement process in the pilot areas will be finalised and published in Q4 2023. It is envisaged that it will include a strategy and framework for delivering on the Government commitment for increasing multi-denominational provision. Any costs involved with delivering on this strategy are not expected to be significant and will be managed within my Department's overall allocation and are not therefore a specific issue for Budget 2024.
My Department is currently exploring the practicalities of a potential survey of primary schools in relation to reconfiguration and details will be announced in due course.
My goal remains to establish a strong process, that has the support of patrons and local communities, and which will enable us to continue to increase the number of multi-denominational primary schools across the country.
