The existence of state-supported Catholic and other faith-based schools in the UK has become a matter of controversy in recent years, as the previously tolerant acceptance of their role in the English educational system has come under attack.This book seeks to explain to both proponents and sceptics of religiously based educational provision how the maintained Catholic sector originated, what it seeks to do and its contribution to society. It describes the Church’s understanding of the primacy of parents in the education of their children and the limits of the state’s legitimate role.The book will be of value to anyone interested in understanding Catholic schools, those who send their children to them, and those who are working and teaching in them – or aspire to do so.