Minister for Education Mary Hanafin is to examine how information in school-inspection reports can be made available more widely to parents after the Supreme Court yesterday ruled against their publication in The Irish Times.
In a landmark ruling, the first involving the Freedom of Information Act, the Supreme Court said publication could lead to the compilation of school league tables.
Expressing disappointment with the ruling, Fionnuala Kilfeather of the National Parents' Council said last night the judgment "copper-fastened the lack of right to any official source of information whatsoever on the work of schools".
Barney Sheedy, principal of Scoil Choilm in Crumlin, Dublin, won his appeal against a decision by the Information Commissioner ordering the Department of Education to release the reports. The department had originally refused an request from The Irish Times for the material under the Freedom of Information Act.
Last night, Ms Hanafin, who opposes league tables, acknowledged that more information should be available to parents when selecting a school.
In a statement yesterday, The Irish Times said it noted with regret the Supreme Court ruling.
"The motivation of the newspaper in seeking access under the Freedom of Information Act to school inspectors' reports was to secure details of literacy standards within primary schools. Our objective was to make this information available to parents to enable them to reach a more informed decision when selecting a school for their children.
"As acknowledged today by the Minister for Education Mary Hanafin, insufficient information is available to parents when making these critical decisions."
