CATHOLIC bishops came under pressure yesterday on the strength of
their commitment to hand over some of the 90pc of primary schools they
control to other patrons.
The head of the body advising on the
provision of greater school choice pressed church representatives for
assurances that they would be "active agents" in change.
Professor
John Coolahan is chair of the Forum on Pluralism and Patronage, which
yesterday began three days of public hearings with education
organisations on issues around the divestment process.
In its
written submission to the forum, the Council for the Education of the
Irish Episcopal Conference said any process of change of patronage must
be driven by parents from the ground up, and could not be led by patrons
or trustees of existing schools
Prof Coolahan picked up on this
point during an exchange with representatives of the bishops' education
council: Bishop Leo O'Reilly, Bishop Brendan Kelly and Fr Michael Drumm.
Dr
O'Reilly told Prof Coolahan that the bishops wanted to see diversity,
but change had to come from the "bottom up, rather than top down", as
they wanted to get away from any notion of bishops "issuing edicts".
Prof
Coolahan said he understood they did not want to lead the process, but
he wanted confirmation that the church was "proactively engaged in
seeking a resolution to a national dilemma".
Fr Drumm said there
was "no doubt" about their commitment, but that it could only be done in
partnership with the State and the public needed more information.
He
said some schools had been approached about the possibility of acting
as a pilot project in the change process, but asked why they had been
singled out.
But he added this did not mean that they could not make
progress.
Community
One of the big issues
to be decided is how support for a different patron will be measured,
and whether it should be based on a vote among parents or the wider
community.
Other challenges facing the change process include the
legalities if a property is to be transferred, and the question of
compensation for the property.
Dr O'Reilly described the
complexities involved in school management ownership as a "triple lock".
He said even if a patron decided to hand over a school, it also had to
be approved by the board of managements and the trustees.
The
Association of Trustees of Catholic Schools told the forum that it could
happen that the decision by a patron to divest a particular school
would be contested by the board of management.
The forum, which is
also examining research and practices on patronage and pluralism in
schools in other countries, will report to Education Minister Ruairi
Quinn in November.
Mr Quinn hopes to start implementing the changes next year.