Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

227. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which the patronage of various school authorities has been handed over from the religious communities to his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22662/18]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

On foot of the report of the Advisory Group to the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector, surveys of parental preferences were undertaken in 43 areas of stable population in 2012 and 2013 to establish the level of parental demand for a wider choice in the patronage of primary schools within these areas.  Analysis of the parental preferences expressed in each area surveyed indicated that there was sufficient parental demand to support changes in school patronage in 28 areas. From 2013 to 2017, ten multi-denominational schools have opened under the patronage divesting process. 

The previous model of divestment yielded only a very limited number of schools for transfer to multi-denominational patrons. The divestment model does not involve building new schools but requires the availability of school premises vacated, for example, due to amalgamation or closure.

I believe that the new schools reconfiguration for diversity process, which will involve the transfer of live schools, has the potential to significantly increase patron diversity in our school system with a target of reaching 400 multi-denominational and non-denominational schools by 2030.  Already the first reconfiguration has successfully taken place, with Two-Mile Community National School opening in September 2017 under the "Early Movers" provision of this new process.

There is no one model that will provide a universal answer to this complex issue and a number of different approaches have been adopted in the context of an expanding population and an increasing demand for multi-denominational education. Therefore, the schools reconfiguration for diversity process will be implemented alongside a number of existing approaches, including the patronage divesting process, voluntary reassignments of patronage under Section 8 of the Education Act, 1989 and the patronage process for new schools, which includes consideration of parental preferences for different types of school patron.