Catholic schools must be confident in their identity if they are to enrich society, Francis Campbell, former British Ambassador to the Vatican, has told a Belfast conference.

Mr Campell, who served as UK Ambassador to the Holy See from 2005 to 2011, also warned that Catholic schools and institutions are in danger of losing their distinct identity unless they put more focus on their unique ethos.

In an address on Catholic education at St Mary’s University College in Belfast, which is the North’s only Catholic higher education institution, Mr Campell insisted that a Catholic education “is not simply about numbers or the orthodoxy of course content, but also about conviction.”

“The constant integration of the ethos with the educational philosophy reminds all concerned of the broader goals of Catholic education. Retaining that integration requires constant attention” he said.

In comments that echo those made recently by Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin, Mr Campbell argued that faith-based institutions “enrich societies through offering a distinctive approach which complements other providers in the education space.

But that distinctiveness needs those institutions to be confident about their identity, otherwise they erode their uniqueness and diminish their patrimony.”

Mr Campell’s comments came after Prof. Peter Finn, the principal of St Mary’s, expressed concern to The Irish Catholic that an education review by the North’s Higher Education Minister Steven Farry could pose a threat to the future of his college.