People in county Tipperary are to be asked what patron bodies they would like to see running their schools.
The Department of Education has announced that it is to extend a survey on school patronage in 38 areas around the country and a number of areas have been identified in county Tipperary.
It is part of the department's plan to divest a number of schools from the Catholic Church which at present is patron to 96% of primary schools.
Tipperary Town, Thurles, Clonmel, Carrick on Suir and Nenagh have all been identified as areas that will be included in the consultation process.
Parents or guardians of school-going children will be able to take part in the survey by logging on to www.education.ie They must have PPS numbers at hand to participate.
