Sir, – In an otherwise thoughtful and helpful contribution to the future make-up of primary education in Ireland (Opinion, November 2nd), Prof Áine Hyland refers, on two occasions, to future patronage systems that could be more inclusive than current church ones.
However, on the evidence of a recent report from the Economic and Social Research Institute, School Sector Variation Among Primary Schools in Ireland, Catholic primary schools are very inclusive.
It shows Catholic schools are more likely to have students from working class backgrounds and the Traveller community and it states that the “widest spread of nationalities was evident in Catholic schools”.
The issue of inclusion is complex and no school can be all things to all people, but it does appear that Catholic schools are more inclusive than they are regularly portrayed. – Yours, etc,