Northern Ireland court to hear claims of discrimination in schools funding programme
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Nichola Harte
Northern Ireland’s High Court has granted leave for a judicial review focused on whether there is discrimination in the allocation of funding aimed at tackling educational disadvantage.
Two schoolchildren from Belfast and Derry, anonymised as JR 338 and 339, are challenging the selection methodology used by education minister Paul Givan and his department to select locations for funding through the RAISE programme.
The RAISE (Raising Achievement in Integrated Schools and Education) programme was introduced in May 2024 following a report from an expert panel on educational underachievement in Northern Ireland.
Belfast firm Harte Coyle Collins, Solicitors & Advocates, acting for the two child applicants, argues that the methodology used means that those who have suffered the greatest educational disadvantage might not necessarily benefit from the programme.
A number of the “specific output areas” (SOAs) identified by the selection methodology are not among the locations identified by NISRA as the most deprived in education, skills and training, they say.
The lawyers argue that the identification of some of these areas is discriminatory, discriminating against Catholics in urban areas, and against children actually suffering significant educational disadvantage.
They also argue that the overweighting criteria used in the program on the attainment of GCSE acts so as to discriminate against Catholics and girls.
Leave was granted by Mr Justice Humphreys in the High Court in Belfast on Wednesday 17 June 2025 and the cases have been set for full hearing on 8 and 9 September 2025.
The Department of Education has confirmed that funding will not be released prior to 30 September 2025.
Nichola Harte, solicitor for the two child applicants, said: “This is an important legal challenge for all school children and across all areas of Northern Ireland.
“The purpose of the challenge is to ensure transparency in the selection process for funding purposes.
“Schools in Northern Ireland are in financial crisis at both primary and secondary levels. Any allocation of resources under the RAISE programme must be fair, transparent.
“The High Court granted leave for careful judicial scrutiny of the methodology of the program is lawful.”
The applicants are represented by Ms Harte with senior barrister Karen Quinlivan KC and junior barrister Aidan McGowan BL.
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