OFFALY towns Birr and Edenderry are among the 38 towns and areas
around the country which are part of Department of Education Survey to
find out what kind of primary school parents want for their children.
While the State provides for free primary education,
schools are established by patron bodies who define the ethos of the
school and appoint the board of management to run the school on a day to
day basis.
The vast majority (96%) of primary schools in Ireland
are owned and under the patronage of religious denominations and
approximately 90% of these schools are owned and under the patronage of
the Catholic Church.
The intention of the survey is to identify
the level of demand from parents/guardians for a wider choice of school
type in areas where that choice is currently limited. The responses of
parents/guardians will be used to consider what changes, if any, could
be made to widen the choice of primary schools in these areas.
In
Birr there are four schools within the town boundary (three Catholic,
one Church of Ireland) and two more within 5kms which are both run under
the Catholic ethos.
The patron bodies who have expressed an
interest in operating a divested school in Birr are An Foras Pátrúnachta
(Multidenominational), Educate Together and Offaly VEC.
In
Edenderry there are five schools within the town boundary (four
Catholic, one Church of Ireland) and two more within 5kms which are both
run under the Catholic ethos. One of the Catholic schools in Edenderry
is a Gaelscoil.
The same three patron bodies, patron bodies An
Foras Pátrúnachta (Multidenominational), Educate Together and Offaly VEC
have also expressed an interest in operating a divested school in
Edenderry.
Roscrea is also included in the survey and it currently
has four schools (three Catholic, one Church of Ireland) within the
town boundary.
Within a 5km radius there are three more schools, two of
which are Catholic while the other is and Interdenominational Gaelscoil.
Parents
of pupils between 0 and 12 and who live in the relevant areas can
complete the survey online on the Department of Education website by clicking here