Pressure was today growing on Sinn Fein to agree to all-party talks to resolve the school transfer crisis after the Belfast Telegraph took its Sit Down and Sort it Out campaign to Stormont.

Four of Northern Ireland's five main political parties have thrown their weight behind our petition which calls on all of the parties to find a resolution to what should replace the 11-plus.

Members of the Assembly interrupted party meetings and joined queues to add their name en masse to the petition when we took it directly to their door at Parliament Buildings yesterday.

Members of the DUP, Ulster Unionist Party, SDLP and Alliance Party all came together for group photographs to stress their MLAs' support for the campaign.

Hundreds of emails from members of the public are also continuing to flood into the Telegraph's office where the petition signatures are being collected and stored.

All of our 108 MLAs received an email to let them know that we would be coming to Stormont to seek their signatures.

DUP MLAs Peter Weir and Allan Bresland were standing at the top of Stormont's steps waiting for us when we arrived.

Mr Weir said: “I think it's incumbent on the Education Minister to listen to what's being said across the board, to actually recognise what's happening on the ground and respond to that and help get this sorted out.”

He added: “The Education Minister has got to move away from the very doctrinaire approach that she's taken.”

Other party members queued to sign the petition later in the morning and then came out for a group photograph in support of the petition with former party leader Rev Ian Paisley.

DUP education spokesman Mervyn Storey said: “We want a resolution to this based on sound education grounds. This has to be sorted for the P6 children transferring next year.

Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster (DUP) has a child in P6.

She said: “I see at first hand the frustration felt by a lot of parents in relation to this issue. We have to get it resolved for the good of the children and we also need a strong education system for the good of the economy.

“I think the petition will get a lot of public support and also cross party support here. I hope that Caitriona Ruane will listen.”

Finance Minister Sammy Wilson said: “We should have got this sorted out years ago. We have had meetings before but the Minister only wants to talk on her terms. I would like to see everything regulated but until then schools should be left to choose their own criteria.”

The SDLP invited the Telegraph into its party meeting room so that its MLAs could sign en masse. They took a break from discussions to add their names to the petition. Dominic Bradley, the party's education spokesman, said: “I think the petition is very sensible. All of the parties need to get together to solve this problem.

“There have been confrontational debates in the education committee but the parties need to put the interests of children ahead of narrow party-political views.”

The Ulster Unionist Party's Assembly team stood together on the steps inside the Great Hall at Parliament Buildings to show their support.

UUP education spokesman Basil McCrea said: “We need to do something to break the logjam.

“The strong public support for the campaign and also from politicians shows that many people want this to be sorted out and sorted out soon.”

The Alliance Party Assembly members all walked down together to steps outside the landmark Parliament Buildings to add their names. The Green Party’s Brian Wilson also signed up.