Number of religious teachers falls to 80

The number of priests, nuns, and brothers still teaching in schools has fallen to around 80, according to the Conference of Religious of Ireland.

About 50 religious are still teaching in primary schools and 30 are in full-time teaching positions in secondary schools.

Figures from the Central Statistics Office show, in 1970, nearly one in five primary school teachers were members of religious orders but, by 1998, they represented just 3%.