School to fight Traveller place ruling

A SCHOOL ordered to offer a place to a Traveller child after it was found to have indirectly discriminated against him is to appeal the finding in the Circuit Court.

Yesterday Séamus Bannon, principal of Christian Brothers High School in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, confirmed the school’s board of management had “decided to appeal the determination of the Equality Tribunal”.

The tribunal ruled that the school’s policy of giving priority to the sons of former pupils “puts members of the Traveller community at a particular disadvantage compared with non-Travellers” and that the High School “has not proved that the priority given to the children of former pupils is appropriate and necessary”.

The Co Tipperary school operates an admissions policy of prioritising applicants on three grounds: religion (being a Roman Catholic); attending a local feeder school; and having or having had a brother or father attend the school.

John Stokes, whose mother, Mary, took the case on his behalf, met two of the criteria, having attended a local feeder school and being a Roman Catholic. However, when he applied to the school in November 2009, the family was told the number of applicants exceeded the number of places available.

At the equality hearing, it was pointed out he could not meet the third criterion because, as the eldest child he could not have a brother in the school, and as the first male in his family to progress to secondary school, he could not have had a parent who attended the school.

The equality officer found the impact on Travellers of the “father rule” was disproportionate to the benefit of the policy and that giving priority to those whose father was a past pupil was indirectly discriminatory as very few Travellers of that generation had attended secondary school.

The school was told immediately to offer a place to John Stokes and to review its admissions policy to ensure it was not in conflict with equal status legislation.

Yesterday the school’s legal advisers, Dublin-based Mason, Hayes and Curran, confirmed an appeal against the tribunal findings was lodged at the Circuit Court last Thursday.

Law firm partner Ian O’Herlihy also confirmed John Stokes has not been offered a place at the school.