The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin is set to meet officials from the Department of Education soon to discuss his proposals to divest control of some Catholic schools, according to a report in the Irish Times.
Dr Martin last week reiterated his belief that the Catholic Church was in control of too many schools, and indicated his desire to cede control of some schools to in areas where the Church was over-represented.
Department officials on Sunday night said it would make contact with Dr Martin and other members of the Catholic hierarchy “to establish a more detailed assessment of areas in which schools could be identified where there is more school provision than needed by the demand for Catholic education and where existing schools could be used to provide for diversity of parental choice.”
Officials from the Department have already had preliminary discussions with the Archbishop in respect of the same issue in late 2007.
At that stage, according to the Department, Dr Martin said that he had no specific locations in mind where one or more schools under his patronage might transfer to another patron, but that it might arise in the future.
On the wider issue of school patronage, the department said it was consulting directly with patrons about specific areas where the establishment of new schools would be required and how emerging demands in these areas would be addressed.
It will be seeking details of any schools where a change of patronage might potentially be relevant, as part of this process.
The Commission on School Accommodation is also undertaking a review of procedures for the establishment of new primary schools.
Among the range of issues being considered is patronage, including the criteria that must be met to become a patron and the circumstances where changes to patronage may be warranted.
Two new pilot community schools under VEC patronage are being rolled out in Dublin.
Meanwhile, Fine Gael’s education spokesman Brian Hayes on Sunday echoed Archbishop Martin’s call for a national forum on education, specifically relating to school governance and patronage.
