Parents in 38 areas including Shannon can vote from today for their preferred choice of primary school patron.
It is part of the historic move to reduce the dominance of the church in primary education and follows a similar exercise late last year, when parents in five areas voted in favour of greater choice.
As a result, the Catholic Church – which controls over 90pc of the country’s 3,000 primary schools has been asked to hand over one in each of the five areas to the multi-denominational body, Educate Together, which had most support as an alternative patron.
The surveys are going live today on www.education.ie, and will continue until February 8.
Paper-based versions of the survey are also available on request
+
