School with mostly Muslim pupils will stay Catholic

Salford Diocese has renewed its commitment to a school with just two Catholic pupils and has advertised for a Catholic head teacher, writes Liz Dodd.

Sacred Heart Primary School in Blackburn, Lancashire, whose intake is overwhelmingly Muslim, had been due to transfer to the Church of England at the beginning of the 2014 academic year but the arrangement broke down.

The diocese agreed to retain the school – which has 200 pupils - when the majority of parents said they wanted it to remain Catholic. In its advertisement for a new head this week, Salford Diocese states that Sacred Heart serves “a culturally and ethnically diverse community with a secure future as a Catholic school”.

Peter Eavers, the deputy director of education, said that Salford was now in a better position to support the school, citing new networks with local schools and specialist teachers.

“We’re better tooled up now and we’re delighted to be able to retain it. It’s congruous with our mission, and Pope Francis’ emphasis on dialogue,” he said.

Nicolas Kennedy, chairman of governors, said that the school had an important role to play in the local community. “We’re trying to say that Catholics love their neighbours and we’re all created by God,” he said. “To do the reverse of that – to say that Catholics don’t want to educate Muslims – is awful,” he added.

He said that the school was almost fully subscribed but said he hoped more Catholics would enrol. “My dream is that there are some Catholics out there who want their children educated in a Catholic school that represents the ethnic diversity of where they are growing up. That would really strengthen the school.”