Mr. Paul Caskey:

I have two quick points about the socio-economic profile. It is a rather crude indicator, but free school meals are one way of measuring. There are issues about uptake within particular communities. Some 28% of children who attend integrated schools in Northern Ireland are entitled to a free school meal. Within selected schools it is about 8%, while the Northern Ireland average is around 25%. It depends where the school is located. We have schools in working-class communities and schools that sit on the interface in Belfast and other places. We also have some schools that sit in very affluent communities.

One of the myths about integrated education is that this must be a middle-class phenomenon. The truth of the matter is that working-class communities are perhaps more receptive to integrated education than middle-class ones, because middle-class communities do not like to admit there might be an issue around some of the schools in the area.

A point was made about auditing, but we are not afraid of auditing. That is the one thing that is missing from the area-based planning process. We want communities to be asked what type of schools they want. If they want something else, that is fine. As I said earlier, it is not about imposing this on anyone. If they opt for the status quothat is fine, but give them a choice and a voice. Ms Merron spoke about transformation and that allows parents to have a democratic ballot overseen within their school. That process is delivered in many integrated schools in Northern Ireland. Faced with that realistic choice, we should not be afraid of auditing.