Church to lose some school patronages

THE Government has drawn up controversial plans to remove the Catholic Church as the patron of some national schools across the country.

The Department of Education and Skills has recently given the Catholic Church a list of areas in which it wants the hierarchy to divest itself of the patronage of national primary schools.

It is understood that over 30 areas — the majority in the greater Dublin region — have been identified by the department for a change of patronage amid growing calls for greater diversity in educational provision. The Catholic Church is currently patron of approximately 92% of the state’s schools at primary level.