Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the committee for accommodating discussion of this matter. Essentially this arises out of the merger of the colleges of education which took place when the former Church of Ireland College of Education became part of Dublin City University, DCU, along with St. Patrick's College, Drumcondra and the Mater Dei Institute of Education in 2016. Part of that arrangement was that there would be a reservation of places on the bachelor of education programme over the following five academic years to allow Church of Ireland or other schools with a minority reformed Christian ethos to have a flow of primary teachers. A similar arrangement has been put in place and approved by the Oireachtas in 1999, 2003, 2008 and 2013. This is consistent with our desire, as discussed in debates on the Education (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016, to ensure that there is a place in our system for minority church schools and that they can continue to operate. This is an arrangement that was entered into at the time of the merger. The 32 reserved places represent fewer than 5% of total places in initial teacher education. The measure ensures that these schools, which probably represent about 5% of schools, have a flow of teachers who are committed to teaching with that ethos. It works as a reservation, so the Central Applications Office, CAO, system will still apply, but the places will be treated as though they were on another course.

A limited number of people, perhaps 70 to 100 over the years, have applied for this number of places. The points requirement could be different because they are treated as part of a separate course. However, it is consistent with a policy that has been in place for many years.