Aidan Farrelly (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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163. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update on the school reconfiguration programme at primary level for 2025, including schools currently engaged in the process. [22069/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for Government commits to seeking to increase choice for parents by ensuring that families can access both multi/non-denominational and faith-based education.

For historical reasons, most primary schools are State-aided parish schools, with the local Bishop as patron. It is recognised, including by the Catholic patrons, that more diverse provision is required to cater for our changing society.

The schools reconfiguration 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.

There are 172 primary schools with a multi-denominational or inter-denominational ethos.

This includes 32 multi-denominational primary schools operating where previously there was denominational provision only and which are catering for diversity by providing multi-denominational options for parents where previously there were none. (This figure relates to 2013 onwards and includes schools which transferred patronage and/or changed ethos to multi-denominational and schools established under the patronage divesting process.)

Given the importance of increasing choice for parents. I intend to publish a plan to increase the number of multi-denominational schools.