I recently wrote about the Department of Education’s review of guidance on pronoun use in schools, highlighting the clear bias of the three Maynooth University (MU) academics leading it, both through their own research interests and their employment at MU, which requires compliance with the Athena Swan Charter.
I also suggested that Bí Cineálta is the likely route through which any pronoun guidance would be implemented, potentially becoming the Athena Swan of schools.
Since then, a parent from a post-primary school sent me a letter issued to parents in December 2024. The letter is from the same three MU researchers who are now carrying out the pronoun guidance review.
Parents were told by the school that a survey of pupils in schools “known for good practice regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion” was being carried out in order to update the national guidelines on said inclusion.
It informed parents that pupils in 2nd year and 5th year were being invited to participate in LGBTQ+ inclusion research as part of the government’s Cineáltas “commitments”. But the survey and participation in the research is presented in such a way that Maynooth University – and ultimately the Department of Education – assumes consent unless parents chose to notify the school that their child was opting out. This school had ratified its Bí Cineálta policy in June 2024.
The issue of consent versus assent is critical. Only parents can legally provide or withhold consent in matters like this. In my opinion, the letter undermines parental authority, clearly indicating that children’s assent to participate in their research would be sought and accepted as if they were adults. Parents were asked to agree to a list of statements including this one:
“I understand that my child will be given the opportunity to give their own assent to participate and I understand that my child will also be reminded that it is not compulsory.”
The process outlined in the letter effectively assumed consent by default. Parents were told that if they were happy for their child to participate, they did not need to respond; only those who objected were to reply with “opt out” and the child’s name. If a parent missed the letter, consent was assumed.
This raises serious ethical questions and questions about the respect of parental rights in government-commissioned research.
Parental consultation in Irish education now has little credibility. It seems to be treated as a formality to be managed so it can ultimately be ignored. Consultations regarding Bí Cineálta followed the now familiar tick-box pattern. I know many parents raised concerns about this policy, which schools collected, but the process continued unchanged.
Meanwhile, the Department was already working with MU researchers to implement Bí Cineálta LGBTQ+ inclusion practices in schools before national ratification of the programme was complete.
That the policy would be ratified across all schools was clearly a foregone conclusion for the Department. Parents participated believing their concerns about the ideological nature of the policy would be addressed, but as with most ideological initiatives, there is no room for dissent. If there is no compliance, there is enforcement.
The letter opens as follows:
“We, Dr Bernie Grummell, Ms Deirdre Forde and Ms Angela Rickard, are researchers/teacher educators in the School of Education in Maynooth University (MU). As part of their commitments in the new Action Plan on Bullying (Cineáltas), the Department of Education and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth have commissioned this research. The findings will be used to update the national guidelines for second-level schools regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion. We are doing a case study in a selection of schools known for good practice regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion.”
At the time, the Minister for Children was Roderic O’Gorman and the Minister for Education was Norma Foley, who is now Minister for Children. In summer 2025, Minister Foley published the National LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Strategy[1] and Action Plan[2], which explicitly identifies Cineáltas as the vehicle for implementing elements of that strategy in schools, confirming the ideological nature of that policy.
This also raises questions about what exactly these “Cineáltas commitments” were and to whom the Government had made them.
Further questions arise. How do schools come to be “known for good practice regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion”? This school was awarded the BelongTo Quality Mark in 2024, likely a factor in its selection for this case study. Professor Bernie Grummell later recommended in her 2025 EU TUTOR report[3] that this quality program be mandatory for schools. Yet this school’s promotional material and website make no mention of the award or any excellence in this area.
I think it is beyond doubt that the current pronoun guidance review will not even ask whether such guidance is necessary. At this point, it is highly unlikely that any impartial guidance will emerge.
Bí Cineálta, pronoun guidance, the TUTOR report, and the National LGBTIQ+ Inclusion Strategy all promote gender and trans ideology for schools. There has never been an open consultation with parents about this or about allowing organisations like BelongTo into classrooms nationwide.
It is high time for the Minister to suspend Bí Cineálta, halt pronoun guidance, take down the flags, and allow a transparent discussion about what is taught to children in school and by whom.
[1] https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/National_LGBTIQ_Inclusion_Strategy_II_2024-2028.pdf
[2] https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/National_LGBTIQ_Inclusion_Action_Plan_2025-2026.pdf
[3] https://tutor-project.eu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/TUTOT-Inclusive-Education-Policy-Recommendations-for-Ireland-MU.pdf
Dr Niamh Regan is a scientist and career coach based in County Meath. She has a PhD in Chemistry from National University of Ireland, Galway and completed postdoctoral research at the University of Limerick in the Materials and Surfaces Science Institute. She later completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Education, followed by a diploma in Web Applications, and has worked in teaching, lecturing and educational development roles.
She currently runs her own career coaching practice and engages with education from the perspective of a concerned parent. She maintains a strong interest in curriculum, policy and wider developments in the sector. Dr Regan is a mother of one primary school–aged child. She has written about the Bí Cineálta Programme here.