Almost 80pc of parents of primary school-going children are ‘satisfied’ or ‘very satisfied’ with the school their child is attending, according to a survey. Only 18 per cent of parents felt ‘dissatisfied’ or ‘very dissatisfied’, with no major difference in satisfaction across regional or socio-economic lines. The vast majority of Irish primary schools are Catholic.

In addition, only 4 per cent of parents did not get their preferred first choice of school for their child according to the research from 2019 which has only now been made public. The figure of 4pc belies claims often made by campaigners that over-enrollment in Catholic schools is common and therefore children of non-Catholic parents miss out on places.

The research, which was commissioned by the Catholic Church, also found that there is overwhelming support among parents (78 per cent) for the Catholic Church to have a role in continuing to shape and influence the ethos of schools.