Integrated AlumNI’s open letter: ‘an action plan with no action’

Integrated AlumNI expresses its disappointment at today’s publication from the Department of Education of an Integrated Education Strategy, promised as part of the passage of last year’s implementation of the Integrated Education Act.

 The Department of Education was required by the Integrated Education Act to produce an Integrated Education Strategy by April 2024. The Act made various suggestions about targets and benchmarks that could be included, such as percentages of pupils granted or denied their choice of education in an Integrated school or the number of schools transforming into Integrated status. None of these targets or benchmarks appear in the strategy.

 The timelines are also worrying. The Department of Education has said it won’t make any changes to the strategy until October 2024, meaning it won’t begin to act on the implementation of the Integrated Education Act until well into 2025. 

 As past pupils and supporters of Integrated Education this strategy in its current format is not acceptable. For many families not able to access their post-primary places in Integrated schools, this will be seen as a huge disappointment. The Integrated Education Act in 2022 was a turning point for the majority of parents who want to access Integrated education in Northern Ireland. 71% of parents would like to send their child to an Integrated school but currently less than 10% can (Lucid Talk poll, 2021). The Integrated Education Act was the vehicle to meet that parental demand, however, this strategy from the Department will do little to improve that.

 Integrated AlumNI will continue to engage in good faith and partnership with the Department of Education, relevant bodies and stakeholder to ensure meaningful and robust actions are included. But this change needs to happen now. Not in 18 months time.

Updated 27 April 2023