Sir, - Your television critic, Eddie Holt, having seen the documentary on the founding of an integrated Catholic and Protestant primary school in Belfast commented (July 12th) that while the project is worth supporting, he was of the opinion "that with all the forces ranged against it from the ghettos, the DUP, the Catholic Church and the Unionist establishment, it would be naive to think that integrated schooling stands much chance of success."
While we do indeed have all sorts of powerful forces ranged against us in the integrated education movement in Northern Ireland, I am glad to be able to disagree with Mr Holt and show that the numbers of integrated schools are growing steadily.
Having started with just 28 pupils in Lagan College in Belfast in 1981, we now have over 7,000 pupils in 33 integrated schools right across the province - in Antrim, Armagh, Ballymena, Banbridge, Belfast (six schools), Carrickfergus, Craigavon, Crossgar, Derry (two schools), Dungannon (two schools), Enniskillen (two schools), Garvagh, Lambeg, Larne, Loughbrickland, Newcastle, Omagh, Portadown, Portaferry, Portrush. Twenty-two of these schools are primary; 11 are secondary (32 are grantaided).
To cope with the increased demand, three new post-primary colleges are opening this September, in West Belfast, East Antrim and North Down/Ards. Parents opening these schools have had their application for grant aid from the Department of Education in Northern Ireland turned down, so they are forced now to seek funding from independent sources and trusts.
The Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education defines integrated education as: "Education together in school of pupils drawn in approximately equal numbers from the two major traditions with the aim of providing for them an effective education that gives equal recognition to and promotes equal expression of the two major traditions. These commitments to equality are fostered both structurally within the Board of Governors, the staff and the pupils and culturally within the overt and hidden curriculum of the school."
Our schools are essentially Christian in character: almost all over-subscribed. Is there a lesson here for our politicians? - Yours, etc. (Mrs) CECIL LINEHAN, Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education, Upper Crescent, Belfast 7.