The Ambiguous Embrace: The Pros and Cons of Accepting Government Funding

Abstract

This chapter takes a critical review of the issues at stake in accepting government funding for the provision of Catholic schools in England. It is divided into four parts. The first part explores the relationship between the state and the Catholic Church when it comes to the funding of Catholic schools within the maintained sector. The second part pays closer attention to the history of this relationship. The third part considers some of the negative implications for accepting government funding, particularly in relation to the compromises that have to be made over admission policies for Catholic schools. The fourth part explores the notion of different models of the Church and how this might be used to inform the relationship between the state and Catholic education. A guiding theme in this chapter is the use of the metaphor of an ambiguous embrace to characterise the ongoing relationship between the Church and the state over the matter of funding for Catholic schools in England.