Could integrated education ease years of sectarianism in Northern Ireland?

Forty years after the first integrated classroom opened its doors, the majority of schools still remain the same. Julie Diamond looks at why it’s so crucial that institutions lose their prejudices

A child waits at army lines to be escorted to Holy Cross school, north Belfast (PA)

Today marks the 40th anniversary of integrated education in Northern Ireland. Over the course of those 40 years, the integrated education movement has been a slow yet progressive development in Northern Ireland’s unique history.

Against the backdrop of the Troubles, communities in Northern Ireland have been largely divided according to religion, with many Catholic and Protestant housing estates separated by peace walls.

Likewise, the education system has been deeply segregated with two conflicting systems, both funded by the state. Traditionally, Catholics attend church schools and Protestants attend controlled schools, with generation after generation growing up and not mixing with the other religion until university or the workplace.