Catholic Seaview Primary School reopens with integrated status

The first Catholic school in Northern Ireland to formally change its status to integrated is to open its doors for pupils.

Former Education Minister Peter Weir approved the change of status for Seaview Primary in Glenarm in March.

The County Antrim school was subsequently congratulated by the film star Liam Neeson on its move.

It is opening for the 2021-22 school year as Seaview Integrated Primary School on Wednesday.

About 7% of pupils in Northern Ireland are taught in formally integrated schools.

They aim to enrol approximately equal numbers of Catholic and Protestant children, as well as children from other religious and cultural backgrounds.

'Looking at expanding'

Existing schools can change to become formally integrated as part of a process that includes a ballot of parents to find out if a majority favours integration.

Seaview Primary is the first Catholic maintained school in Northern Ireland to "transform" in this way.

Liam Neeson sent a video message to the school in March

The school's principal Barry Corr told BBC News NI that the number of pupils in the school had doubled to 88 since they announced the plan to become integrated in 2018.

"Not only that, but the percentage of Catholics, Protestants and pupils from other backgrounds including different faiths and those associated with no faith is roughly 40/40/20," he said.

"It's almost the perfect integrated school so we're absolutely delighted.

"We hope that within five years we will reach our capacity of 121 pupils and we'll also be looking at expanding."

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Mr Corr said there had been "a whole raft of things" that the school has been doing to "bring us to this day".

"At the minute we're looking at a whole range of subjects and how we're going to develop those - curriculum development," he added.

"We're looking at PE for example, we're going to be looking at all the different sports - football, Gaelic, hockey, camogie.

"With the RE curriculum we're looking at not only the Christian events - sacramental preparation - but also at other religions around the world and how they celebrate their faith.

"We also look at the equality, the core principles of being an integrated school.

"We're very lucky to have almost a 40/40/20 split for pupils and that's something that we're trying to develop for staff, for our governors.

"Other small things for example would be our assemblies, we would invite ministers - and have done - from all the Christian faiths to come and lead assemblies."

Plans had been in place by the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools to close the school

The Department of Education has a statutory duty to "to encourage and facilitate the development of integrated education".

In the New Decade, New Approach deal the executive also committed to "support educating children and young people from different backgrounds together".

However, that was in the context of a wider review of Northern Ireland's education system, which has not yet begun.

Famous supporters

Northern Ireland-born Liam Neeson is a long-time supporter of integrated education and has previously called for more schools to become integrated.

Rugby international Andrew Trimble and Gaelic football star Oisín McConville also told BBC News NI's The View programme in May that they wanted more children from different backgrounds to go to school together in Northern Ireland.

Other bids by Catholic schools in Castlerock in County Londonderry, Brollagh in County Fermanagh and Clintyclay near Dungannon in County Tyrone to transform to integrated status have been rejected in recent years.

Carrickfergus Central Primary in County Antrim and Harding Memorial Primary and Brefne Nursery School - both in Belfast - will also open to pupils on Wednesday having transformed to become integrated schools ahead of the 2021-22 school year.