AQW 50074/22-27

Mrs Michelle Guy
Alliance Party
Lagan Valley

Tabled Date: 30/06/2026
Answered On Date: 08/07/2026
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education to detail any options available to asylum seekers in temporary accommodation to assess academic ability and have a greater choice of schools.

Answer:

Asylum-seeking children in temporary accommodation have access to the same assessment and admissions arrangements as other children.

Through their school, they have access to the same assessment opportunities as their peers, allowing schools to evaluate their academic ability and attainment. Principals may, where appropriate, exempt individual pupils from specific assessments.

Temporary accommodation status does not affect eligibility for academically selective schools, however asylum-seeking children may arrive in Northern Ireland after the main admissions process has concluded, which can restrict access to oversubscribed schools, including grammar schools.

Post-primary applications are considered under the same admissions arrangements as for all other children. Where a school's criteria include a SEAG outcome, applicants must normally have sat the assessment or be considered through the school's published special circumstances arrangements.

Children seeking admission after the main admissions process may have fewer school options where preferred schools are already full or oversubscribed. As with all applicants, parents retain the right to appeal admissions decisions through the established statutory process.