The first schools have been signing up to Opting Out and I just wanted to say a big thank you to them. It is lovely to see the first schools showcasing how they accommodate children and teachers in their schools. I have already received a message from a parent who is delighted that the school she intends to send her child to is listed. I have also received a message from a teacher who is also delighted to see where she stands in her own school.
However, this is only a very small start. 9 schools out of almost 3,000 is a very tiny number of schools. The deadline for schools to register is the 1st November, less than 6 weeks away. We are still awaiting for a number of patron bodies and management bodies to reply to our call in April so we will be updating our progress on that in early October.
Some people may be interested in some statistics so far, albeit a very small sample.
- 9 schools have signed up
- 2 are under CoI patronage, 6 are Catholic, 1 is interdenominational
- 7 out of 9 schools do not have a religious symbol on their crest
- 2 of the schools already have an Opting Out Policy