Debate contribution: Integrated Education: Demand
Debate contribution by Mr Paul Givan on .
- MLA
- Mr Paul Givan
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 12 January 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Integrated Education: Demand
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5311388
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I attended New-Bridge Integrated College, just before Christmas. I believed very much that it was a real thing due to the wide diversity of sporting and cultural activities in which the children there were being given an opportunity to participate. It was also able to demonstrate a balanced 40:40:20 split when it came to the demographics. It was at pains to make the case to me that it was integrated not just in name but when it came to pupil catchment, enrolment and the diversity of curricular activities that it provided. That is not the case in every integrated school. Often, those that have transformed from controlled to controlled integrated have not been able to follow that through when it comes to the diversity of pupil enrolment. There is a challenge there. New schools have been able to demonstrate what many would regard as the traditional integrated-type school ethos. However, where schools have transformed, not only has it not worked, on a number of occasions, but there have been examples of where the minority community has decreased rather than increased. That is a honest conversation to be had. It is one that I had recently with Integrated AlumNI, when we talked about how we can promote the integrated ethos within our schools. I do not believe that there is any school in Northern Ireland, from any sector, be that Irish-medium, Catholic maintained or controlled, that practises and teaches a segregated approach to its pupils. They are not teaching their children that segregation is a good thing. We need to move the debate away from integrated being regarded as being inclusive and, if you are not integrated, somehow, you are exclusive and the problem. That is not the case.
288 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.14 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.71).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.66).
- Subject area: Education structures, integration and community division.
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.24 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.03 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.06 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.07 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.10 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.71 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.14 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.66 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.05 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.29 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Education structures, integration and community division | 0.99 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.01 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:13 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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