Mick Clifford: Religion should not be a bargaining tool

In 2012, Education Minister Ruairí Quinn kicked off his forum for patronage and pluralism with the aim of the divestment by the Church of patronage of around 40% of schools to better reflect society.

We had a bit of a dilemma when our firstborn arrived: Do we get him baptised? I have no religion and my wife has less. Ideally, we wanted the children to be schooled in a multi-denominational setting that would be the natural place for a child of non-religious — lapsed Catholics in our case — parents to go in a progressive, liberal society that caters for all. Except that’s not how we educate children in this country.

There were two Educate Together schools in our general locale in north Dublin, but the waiting lists were lengthy. On advice, soon after the birth, we applied to put his name down in about seven different schools, most of which were — like over 90% of primary schools — under the patronage of the Catholic Church.