School roles
Sir: As the chairman of the governors of the Cardinal Manning Boys School and also a governor of the Cardinal Vaughan, I was somewhat disappointed to read Piers Paul Read's recent article (`Catholic class war') in your issue of 22 November 1986. He suggests that the debate over the future of Catholic schools is a class issue. This is a simplistic and naïve view of the arguments.
He comes fresh to a debate which has been taking place over the last decade as to the correct delivery of education for the 16 to 19-year-olds. In central London school rolls started to fall some 15 years ago. The county sector was the first to feel the impact and a reorganisation of its existing schools took place. This resulted in both amalgamations and closures. We are now at the crossroads that the county sector were some eight years ago.
The Church in arriving at its decision has to face up to the fact that in many instances, pupils when they reach the age of 16 seek a change: in fact Piers Paul Read's own son followed such a course. At the same time, because education is cash- limited, painful decisions have to be made on how to achieve the delivery of the widest curriculum to all pupils.
Piers Paul Read appears to be suggesting that all resources should be directed to those schools that achieve the highest academic success. It discounts that only some ten per cent of our population have the intellectual capability of achieving A levels. On this scenario does this mean that the Church has to abandon education for the remainder of pupils.
Just as Piers Paul Read fights to keep open the Cardinal Vaughan so I seek to keep open the Cardinal Manning. I have been chairman of governors for the last 12 years and in that period of time, I have observed the commitment and dedication of the teachers of the school both in counselling, advising and teaching of pupils and as a result they have set many so-called academic failures on the road to success.
The debate taking place within the Catholic community is how to deliver education to meet the needs of all rather than just a minority and that is why the present re-organisation is being proposed.
J. M. O'Donnell 13 Highlever Road, London W10
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