Frank Feighan (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for attending. On a visit last year to two integrated schools in Northern Ireland as Chairman of the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, I saw at first hand the success of bringing children and staff from Catholic and Protestant traditions, as well as those of other faiths or none, together in one school. The two schools were Strangford Integrated College in Newtownards and Hazelwood Integrated Primary and Nursery School in Newtownabbey, Belfast. There was a clear emphasis on respecting and celebrating different backgrounds and I sensed a genuine atmosphere of tolerance, respect and curiosity among students for one another.

A number of key issues arose during my visit. For example, applications to the schools were increasing in number, showing a need for capital investment to provide the resources required to implement the curriculum properly. Further investment was urgently required in one school for programmes that addressed students' special needs at an early age, thus preventing the need for interventions at later stages.

There are 62 integrated primary and second level schools in Northern Ireland with a total of 22,000 pupils, accounting for 7% of the region's entire student population. It is important to state that the Good Friday Agreement notes that an essential aspect of the reconciliation process is the promotion of a culture of tolerance at every level of society, including through initiatives to facilitate and encourage integrated education and mixed housing.

A great deal of good work is being done in terms of integrated education. As part of the island of Ireland, we must continue to play our part. Between 2007 and 2014, the reconciliation fund of the now Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade made a total of €283,000 available to the Northern Ireland Council on Integrated Education. I would like an update on these funding resources and any further plan to support the development of integrated education in Northern Ireland.

This is a good news story. It was clear from my visit that integrated education could be a strong and powerful force for bringing people together and promoting genuine understanding. I hope that the Minister of State's response will refer to more funding for integrated schools. They have made a significant difference.They have been at the vanguard of change in Northern Ireland and we must play our part, too.

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important topic for discussion. It is an issue in which he has had a keen interest for many years and I am delighted to be in a position to update the Seanad on it. The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan, has asked me to convey his apologies and regrets that he cannot be here.

As co-guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement, the Government remains committed to supporting and encouraging integrated education in Northern Ireland as an essential aspect of the reconciliation process. Considerable progress on reconciliation has been seen in the 18 years since the signing of the Agreement on 10 April 1998, but, as the Seanad will be aware, Northern Ireland continues to be, in large part, a segregated society. Integrated education which brings together students of Catholic and Protestant traditions and those of other faiths and none offers huge potential to address the divisions that persist and help to promote a culture of tolerance throughout all communities. It is through meaningful shared experiences such as education that young people will have the opportunity to truly begin to get to know people from different backgrounds and leave behind the burdens of the past.

The commitment of the Irish and British Governments, as well as the parties in the Northern Ireland Executive, to encourage initiatives in support of integrated education, as well as shared education, was further stated in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement and the 2015 Fresh Start plan. In this regard, the announcement in March 2016 by the then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Ms Theresa Villiers, on the release of funding in support of the Stormont House Agreement and Fresh Start commitments was a welcome development which should support the provision of additional integrated schools and facilitate the building of new facilities for a number of existing integrated schools.

In support of the Irish Government’s long-standing commitment in this area, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s reconciliation fund has provided financial support for many years for organisations working in the area of integrated education, including the Integrated Education Fund and the Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education. I take the opportunity to commend both organisations for the joint work they carry out on this issue. Since 2011, €158,000 has been provided in grants for the Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education, including a grant of €25,000 in 2015. A further application is pending. In the first round of 2016 funding, the Integrated Education Fund received a grant of €10,000 from the reconciliation fund. To date since 2009, over €91,000 has been allocated to the Integrated Education Fund in support of its work. In addition to this, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, including through the Irish Joint Secretariat in Belfast, engages closely on the issue of integrated education and provides a range of additional supports for organisations working on this issue, including through the hosting of events to highlight this important aspect of reconciliation.

Frank Feighan (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for her response. I also thank the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Minister, as well as previous Ministers, for being generous with funding and the time allocated to the issue of integrated education, as well as many other cross-Border and peace initiatives across the island but particularly in Northern Ireland. I also pay tribute to the officials of the Department in Belfast, the Republic of Ireland and further afield for the work they have done.

This is a good news story. Integrated education has made a huge difference in Northern Ireland. It has been at the vanguard of change in the way education is delivered in Northern Ireland and has been of enormous help in terms of social integration. I wish to mention one person, a great friend of mine, Baroness May Blood, who comes from the Shankill area and sits in the House of Lords. The House will know her from the work she has done at the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly. She has been a tireless worker on the issue of integrated education and raised £15 million during the years. I thank her and all members of the Integrated Education Fund in Northern Ireland for the work they have done. They have made a huge difference. It behoves us to support their great work in every possible way.