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Paul Kavanagh was sentenced to five life terms for blowing up Chelsea Barracks in 1981.

He is married to senior Sinn Fein politician Martina Anderson and was a special advisor to Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.

The Education Authority has announced that he is one of four new appointees.

Ann Travers, whose sister Mary was gunned down by the IRA as she left chapel in west Belfast in 1984, hit out at the appointment.

Ms Travers was instrumental in introducing a law which forbade anyone with terrorist convictions from becoming a ministerial special advisor at Stormont, after a woman convicted of involvement in her sister’s murder, Mary McCardle, was appointed to such a role.

Now she says that the same standards should also apply to Education Authority appointees.

“Mr Kavanagh is blessed to be able to be able to have a career, unlike his victims of the IRA bombing campaign in England in the 1980s,” Ms Travers said.

“He served part of his prison sentence before being released as part of the Prisoner Release scheme under the Belfast Agreement. Some will say he served his time and should be allowed to move on with his life.”

But she said his actions left children without fathers and wives without husbands.

“His victims live every day with the consequences of PTSD and traumatic grief.

“I find it quite bizarre that the Education Authority Board would feel that somebody guilty of such a serious crime is a good role model for our young people, whom we are trying to educate on the lifetime effects of trauma in the hope that what happened in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s will never happen again.

“Unfortunately in Derry some young people are already being influenced by those who hold similar violent political views to Paul Kavanagh back in the ‘80s. They were involved in rioting and the murder of my friend Lyra McKee in 2019. These young people need positive role models , murder is always wrong.

“In the memory of one of their own young teachers who was murdered by terrorists I would ask the Education Authority to strongly rethink this appointment and to expect the same moral standards from their board members as they would their teachers and indeed students. “

Ann’s sister Mary was a primary school teacher in her first year of teaching at Holy Child Primary School in Andersonstown when she was gunned down as she came out of chapel with her father Tom, a judge.

TUV leader Jim Allister, who helped her introduce the legal bar on minister special advisors with criminal convictions, also hit out at the decision.

“The appointment of Paul Kavanagh to the board of the Education Authority is a kick in the teeth for innocent victims and sends a dreadful message to the upcoming generation,” he said.

He said the Chelsea Barracks bomb saw two civilians - 59 year old widow Nora Field and 18 year old Irishman John Breslin brutally murdered and dozens of others injured.

“To give such an individual a role in the oversight of education is frankly sickening. No society should view this as normal or acceptable.

“The Assembly rightly deemed Kavanagh unfit to hold office as a SpAd when it passed Ann’s Law. He has no business sitting on the board of the Education Authority.”

Kenny Donaldson, Spokesman for Innocent Victims United said: “This is not the calibre of appointment that Northern Ireland needs within the Education fraternity”. DUP East Londonderry MP Gregory Campbell said: “Each political party makes nominations to the Education Authority. It is a matter for each party who they nominate although it is entirely understandable the outrage at this Sinn Fein nomination.”

A Sinn Féin spokesperson said: “Paul Kavanagh has a wealth of experience in education, government and policy development.”

An Education Authority (EA) spokesperson said: “The appointment of political members to the EA board is made in accordance with the D’Hondt Principles. Under these principles, members are nominated by the relevant political party.”

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IRA victim Ann Travers slams Education Authority for appointing ex-bomber Paul Kavanagh