Integrated Education Fund

‘Parental choice is an illusion’: the gap between integrated education demand and provision

Allan LEONARD (Mr Ulster) on August 10, 2026, 9:28 am

| Readers 749

As part of this year’s Féile debates and discussion programme, the Integrated Education Fund (IEF) hosted a public event at St Mary’s University College in Belfast, to launch new research into the reality of parental choice in school selection in Northern Ireland. The event was chaired by Amanda Ferguson, a Belfast-based freelance journalist and Northern Ireland correspondent for Reuters, and opened with a welcome from Dr Jessica Blomkvist, IEF’s senior advocacy officer. The research was presented by its author, Kathryn Torney, a freelance journalist, researcher, and consultant. A …

‘Social integration begins with integrated education and integrated housing’

Paul Gosling on June 28, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 816

For Northern Ireland to become more integrated, there has to be a greater focus on integrated schools and integrated housing, argues the chief executive of the Integrated Education Fund, Tina Merron. She was interviewed for the latest Forward Together podcast. “I think the majority of people in Northern Ireland want a shared future and a united community,” says Tina. “We need to give civil society more of a say. We need to encourage people to speak up and especially young …