Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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201. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures currently in place to ensure compliance with the right of children to opt out of religious instruction, and that suitable alternative educational activities are provided in such cases; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54537/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The manner in which any school ensures that the right to not attend religion instruction classes is upheld is a matter for the school concerned. Each individual school must determine the particular arrangements which are most appropriate in its individual circumstances, having regard to local issues such as available space, supervision requirements and how the school concerned organises classes etc.  

Guidance for good practice is available to schools in the follow-up paper to the Report of the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector which was published in 2014. The paper provides an overview of different types of arrangements that schools can put in place to facilitate parents who do not wish for their children to attend religious instruction.  

The paper encourages school authorities to consider their policies and practices and to review whether they are taking the steps necessary to welcome all pupils and make them feel included.  

The Catholic Schools Partnership has also published guidelines for Catholic schools in relation to the inclusion of all pupils. These guidelines also support school to facilitate requests to attend school without attending religious instruction. 

Most primary schools are State-aided parish schools, with the local bishop as patron. It is recognised, including by the Catholic school patrons, that our schools need to more accurately reflect the reality of our increasingly diverse society and meet the expectations parents have for their children. 

The Minister for Education and Youth has confirmed her intention to set out a comprehensive plan aimed at expanding parental choice in relation to multidenominational education. This initiative reflects the Government’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that the education system is inclusive, diverse, and responsive to the evolving needs of families across the country. 

The schools reconfiguration process aims to meet demand from local school communities and to accelerate the delivery of multidenominational schools by transferring schools to multidenominational patrons, where school communities support this.   

The department has published a comprehensive Education Plan 2025 that outlines a significant body of work being undertaken this year to deliver for everyone in our school and youth services’ communities.

There are over 100 actions in this plan including a commitment to launch a survey of primary school parents and guardians and parents and guardians of children not yet in school on their preferences on important aspects of school provision and choice, such as the future patronage, ethos of their school. Also included in the plan is a commitment to provide best practice guidance to schools in relation to arrangements to facilitate parental requests for children to attend school without attending religious instruction.

The Minister intends to launch the survey in the coming period. Further details will be announced in due course. 

The department is currently engaging with stakeholders and consulting with education partners to ensure that any plans, particularly those concerning the primary school survey, are carefully planned, timely, and effective.