Alliance Education Spokesperson Trevor Lunn MLA has said to help move Northern Ireland forward to brighter future free from violence and prejudice it is essential that there is increased shared and integrated education.
Trevor Lunn MLA said: “To help deliver a society free from prejudice it is vital that we increase the level of shared and integrated education. If we want to ensure a permanent end to the violence which has blighted us in the past we need to be radical and we need to start dismantling the barriers which exist in our society.
“I know there has been much talk about reform in education but what we need is action. I would like to see the creation of a strategy which outlines time-factored targets for shared and integrated education.
“Educating children together right from the start is crucial to help build good relations and ensure respect. I wonder if people who attended the same school would be so willing to attack each other in riot situations.
“We have seen incidents of disorder over the summer in a number of areas and I believe that if we are to try and prevent such trouble in the future we need to remove division in our society and a key aspect of this is an increased emphasis on shared and integrated education.
ENDS