CATHOLIC SCHOOLS will resist any moves to impose changes in patronage against their will and without the agreement of parents and the wider school community.
In a position paper published yesterday, the Catholic Schools Partnership said the process of transferring some Catholic schools to other patrons must not be rushed since this would draw hostility and resentment.
The partnership – a group providing support for all partners in the Republic’s Catholic schools – called for a lengthy period of consultation and said changes should only be considered after a series of pilot studies were assessed.
By contrast, Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn envisages a speedy timetable, where the process could begin by January. The Minister envisages that 50 per cent of the church’s 3,000 primary schools could be transferred to other patrons.
Fr Michael Drumm, chairman of the partnership, said a transfer rate of 10 per cent might be more realistic, given the immense logistical difficulties involved.
Fr Drumm said the 50 per cent figure had destabilised school communities, raising fears that change might be imposed from the top down. He said the process would be a bottom-up exercise which could only begin in response to local demand on the ground.
In a detailed paper, the partnership backs a series of pilot projects to examine public demand for change. It also warns of costs involved in school transfer. Catholic schools, it says, may require some compensation for the investment made in premises.
Last week, Mr Quinn established the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism which will tease out how changes in patronage might occur.
Fr Drumm said it was “laughable” to suggest that the amount spent on religion in primary schools – about 2½ hours per week – can no longer be justified at a time when there are growing fears about literacy and numeracy standards. Fr Drumm said there was not the slightest shred of evidence to support this charge – made by Mr Quinn last week.
Anne McDonagh, education secretary at the Archbishop of Dublin’s office, said she had received many calls from Catholic schools who feared they might be forced to make changes against their will. It was important to stress, she said, that the church is not engaged in social engineering; the change in patronage would only come about if there was a clear parental demand for such change.
Close to 90 per cent of the 3,200 primary schools in the State are run by the Catholic Church.
The patronage debate was triggered more than five years ago by the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation and moved forward by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, who acknowledged that the church was over-represented in education.
The partnership acknowledges that some Catholic schools may no longer be viable in some areas.
“In such situations,” it says, “the Catholic patron, in dialogue with the local community, should plan for greater diversity of school provision in that area.
“This must be planned locally and based on respect for the rights of parents and all other stakeholders, including local parish communities. If sufficient demand for a school under different patronage can be demonstrated then all of the stakeholders should work in partnership towards this goal.”
