Revolution in education provision

In recent years there has been a substantial proliferation in the volume of parents who are opting to send their children to 
non-denominational Educate Together schools. eolas reports.

Educate Together owes its origins to the success of a local school project in Dalkey in 1978 which espoused the stated aim “to develop and support in Ireland the establishment of schools which are multi-denominational, co-educational and managed under a system which is predominantly democratic in character, wherever and whenever there is viable local support for such a school”. After a protracted period of growth, Educate Together became the fast-growing patron of schools in Ireland.

The non-denominational school provider is critical of what it describes as “Catholic first” enrolment policies which cause parents to compromise personal values to ensure access to a local school for their children. Educate Together offers an alternative for those of all denominations and none.

The national office of the charity is tasked with five core objectives. These include:

1. increasing school places in accordance with a national spatial strategy;
2. operating leaders in ethical education;
3. ensuring that Educate Together schools fully implement their Charter;
4. ensuring the successful implementation of Educate Together at second-level; and
5. achieving financial security and stability.

Growth

Progress made by Educate Together schools in 2015, when three primary and one post-primary schools were opened, was exceeded in 2016 with the opening of four national and five second-level schools. 2016 was the registered charity’s second highest total schools opened, surpassed only 2012 when 12 national schools were opened. There are now 81 Educate Together primary schools and nine post-primary schools across Ireland.

According to Educate Together there are now thousands of names on the waiting lists for enrolment to these schools. Educate Together suggests that additional schools are necessary to fulfil demand and create a network of non-denominational schools with a spatial spread ensuring that all families in Ireland are within a radius of 30 minutes’ travel time from home.

Through the Action Plan for Education, Education Minister Richard Bruton has committed to broadening parental choice through the establishment of 400 multi and non-denominational schools by 2030. However, within the current climate, the Educate Together programme does not receive Government funding for the establishment and support of secondary-level schools. Educate Together primary schools receive 20 per cent funding from the Department for Education and Skills for primary schools.

Educate Together estimates suggest that it costs around ⇔68,000 to open a national school and ⇔102,000 for a second-level school. These costs include assessing demand, building or acquiring a school building, recruiting staff, recruiting a school board and ensuring support for the initial start-up phase.

Whilst welcoming the Government commitment to increased education spending through Budget 2017, Educate Together is critical of the lack of specific funding for new schools and the divestment initiative. Chief Operating Officer Emer Nowlan outlines: “Families seeking school choice were encouraged by the inclusion of specific targets in the Programme for Government. However, these targets cannot be met on fresh air.” She adds: “We are posing the obvious question: how does the government plan to meet its own commitments to school choice and pluralism if is not willing to invest in the programme?”

Patronage

Some 96 per cent of Irish primary schools are under religious patronage. In order to reflect the changing nature of Irish society, a report by the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector recommended: “that the State should ensure that there is a diversity of provision of school type within educational catchment areas throughout the State which reflects the diversity of religious and non-religious convictions now represented in the State.”

In 2011, then Education Minister Ruairí Quinn committed to an initial phase of a programme which would see approximately 50 schools across 43 towns and four Dublin areas having their patronage divested to alternative stakeholders. While the language implies a simple transfer from one patron to another, more specifically it refers to the establishment of a new school in an appropriate area, regardless of a transfer of patronage.

While noting an urgency for action, the report recommended against radical change, instead suggesting that this be incremental. The proposed three stages of phase one were suggested to reach completion by September 2013 with a second phase recommended to proceed after a subsequent consultation and report.

To date, however, only nine Educate Together schools have opened under this transition process, a figure proportional to 0.3 per cent of Ireland’s 3,266 primary schools. Areas which are currently awaiting divestment include: Arklow, Ballina, Clonmel, Cobh, Dungarvan, Fermoy, Kells, Killarney, Leixlip, Loughrea, Nenagh, Palmerstown, Passage West, Shannon, Wesport and Whitehall. A further criticism of the process levelled by Educate Together is the unsuitability of buildings offered up by existing patrons. The educational charity insists: “[We] will not open schools that are inaccessible, that are not viable in the long-term, and do not serve the needs of the communities they are meant to serve.”

Educate Together in figures
• 90 schools across the State
• 26 per cent based in disadvantaged urban areas
• 22,000 students
• 1,200 staff

Future

Looking ahead to the 2017 and 2018 school years, the Department of Education and Skills has announced the creation of 13 new schools. Of these, Educate Together has stated its intention to apply for patronage of three national schools, located in Dún Laoghaire, Ballincollig and Dublin South City Centre. The charity has also been awarded patronage of four post-primary schools sited in Castletroy, Dublin South City, Firhouse and Malahide/Portmarnock.

Educate Together Regional Development Officer Niall Wall asserts: “The passion and enthusiasm of the parent campaigners in Limerick has been amazing and I’m delighted that all the hard work has paid off. It’s been a pleasure to work with them and I’m sure that the Limerick Educate Together Secondary School community will be as dynamic and engaged as the campaign has been.”