Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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840. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills where parents can find guidance on the structure for children opted out of religion under the new primary school curriculum; if her Department plans to review of these guidelines within the lifetime of this Government; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [59459/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The provisions of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 requires, where schools provide religious instruction, they must clearly set out in their admission policies the school’s arrangements for students, where the parent or in the case of a student who has reached the age of 18 years, the student, has requested that the student attend the school without attending religious instruction in the school. 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, and other relevant matters.

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 published guidelines for Catholic schools in relation to the inclusion of all pupils. These guidelines also support schools 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 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.

The opportunities for the establishment of new multi-denominational primary schools have declined. Demographic trends and projections at primary school level nationally have peaked. In order to maximise the use of the existing school estate, the Department has developed the schools reconfiguration process. The schools reconfiguration process aims to meet demand from local school communities and to accelerate the delivery of multi-denominational schools by transferring schools to multi-denominational patrons, where school communities support this.

My department has published a comprehensive Education Plan 2025 that outlines a significant body of work being undertaken this year to deliver for our school and youth service communities.

This plan reflects the Government’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that the education system is inclusive and responsive to the evolving and diverse needs of families across the country. 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, and ethos of their school.

The Education Plan 2025 also includes 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. This will build on the legislative requirements set out in the admissions act.