1. Schools, Colleges, Universities. |
The General Synod Board (Northern Ireland) is responsible for monitoring public policies which affect education.
The principal involvement of the Church of Ireland in schools is in the areas of:
(A) Pastoral Care, Worship and Teaching of Religious Education
(B) Management
(C) Curriculum development, Religious Education, advisory support
(D) Assessment, comment and representation on education policy to both government and local authorities
The principal work of the Church of Ireland in schools is completed by two groups of people:
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The main involvement of the Church in the management of education is as ‘Transferor Representatives’ on the Boards of Governors of ‘controlled’ schools. ‘Transferor Representative’ is the legal term for those churches (mainly Anglican, Presbyterian and Methodist) and other interests (mainly factory and landed estate owners) who ‘transferred’ their schools between the 1930s and the 1950s into partnership with the local education authorities. (Currently referred to as Education and Library Boards - E.L.B.s - in Northern Ireland).
The number of Transferor Representatives on a Board of Governors varies in accordance with the size of the Board and this in turn depends on the history and size of the school.
Most primary schools will have a 9 strong board, 4 of which will be Transferors, and the remainder comprise representatives of teachers, parents and the E.L.B.
The Boards of Governors are responsible for
(i) appointing teachers
(ii) short-listing principal teachers for interview by the Teaching Appointments Committee of the E.L.B.
(iii) ensuring that the school delivers the Northern Ireland Common Curriculum including Religious Education
(iv) managing the school budget under varying degrees of delegated responsibility
(v) assisting the school to
meet the needs of the local community
Being a member of a Board of Governors is a demanding duty especially for larger schools. However, the Churches regard this area of influence and responsibility as a top priority and encourage clergy and laity to regard such service as an essential act of Christian witness and vocation.
There are also Transferor Representatives on each of the five E.L.B.s in Northern Ireland. Every four years the Churches’ Boards of Education nominate a number of people to the Minister for Education (N.I.) who then selects and appoints them. The E.L.B.s are responsible for overall budgeting, curriculum support, some governor training and resource planning.
The Board played an active part in establishing the joint working party between the Church of Ireland, Presbyterian, Methodist and Roman Catholic Churches which produced the Common Core Syllabus in Religious Education. This was recognised in the Department of Education and is an essential part of the Northern Ireland Common Curriculum and is required to be taught in all schools.
Since the publication of the Core Syllabus representatives of the Church of Ireland, Presbyterian and Methodist Boards of Education have met regularly with the Advisers in Religious Education to the Area Boards in order to develop resources to deliver the Core and other areas of Religious Education.
The Secretary of the Board provides an advisory service to teachers and clergy on aspects of Church of Ireland worship, witness and belief. He is also a member of the Religious Education Committee of the Council for Curriculum, Examination and Assessment.
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The principal involvement of the Church is on the Board of Governors of STRANMILLIS COLLEGE, where the majority of teachers are educated who will serve in the controlled schools. The College and its lecturers are ‘recognised’ by The Queen’s University of Belfast which assesses and awards its degrees.
The Church of Ireland together with the Presbyterian and Methodist Churches played a major role in the development and teaching of the R.E. Department. The Church of Ireland Chaplain to the College is Canon G.B. Moller, St. Bartholomew’s Rectory, 16 Mount Pleasant, Stranmillis, Belfast BT9 5DS.
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The Head of R.E. is Rev. Dr. R.N. Brown The Principal is Dr. R. McMinn For further information contact: Stranmillis College |
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There are two universities in Northern Ireland: The Queen’s University of Belfast and The University of Ulster which has campuses at Jordanstown, Coleraine and Londonderry.
The following are the Church of Ireland chaplains:
Queen’s University: Rev. A.J. Forster, 22 Elmwood Avenue, Belfast BT9 6AY
UUJ - Jordanstown: Rev. M.A. Malcolm, 6 Mount Pleasant Road, Jordanstown, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim BT37 0NQ
UUC - Coleraine & Rev. J.E.G. Bach, The Chaplaincy, University of Ulster, 70 UUL - Londonderry: Hopefield Avenue, Portrush, Co. Antrim BT56 8HE
The Board sponsors an annual series of lectures at QUB in support of the Church of Ireland Chaplaincy. Previous lecturers include Michael Ramsey, Stuart Blanch and Donald Coggan.
The Chaplaincy Centre at QUB has student accommodation, a chapel and coffee house.
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