Religious Ethos of the School

Last updated: Mon, Mar 13th, 2017 11:13:53 am

In describing the functions of the Board of Management of a school the Education Act (1998) states that the Board shall "uphold and be accountable to the patron for so upholding the characteristic spirit of the school ..." The religious ethos of the school is an essential part of this "characteristic spirit" and consequently must be clearly understood and agreed by the Board of Management and by the whole school community.

Community Schools are commonly perceived to be "multi-denominational". This term is taken to mean:
That the school will seek to provide religious instruction and worship in accordance with the rites, practice and teaching of the religious denomination to which the pupil belongs.
The original Articles of Management of Comprehensive Schools are silent on the issue of religious ethos. It is therefore incumbent on the Trustees and the Board of Management to define its own religious ethos and practice.

The Trustees (Patrons) of any particular school have a particular responsibility to agree the "characteristic spirit" of the school which includes, inter alia, its moral, religious and spiritual values. Attention in this regard is drawn to Guidelines on the Role of Trustees in Community Schools as published by ACCS.