Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We will reply and request details of the specific issues we have highlighted.

No. 2527 is correspondence from the clerk to the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, acknowledging correspondence we sent to the committee. We will note and publish the correspondence.

No. 2528 is correspondence from Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú, Secretary General of the Department of Education and Skills, dated 6 November, regarding correspondence we sent to him on the alleged misuse of special educational needs allocations and resources. We asked about the Department's oversight of school expenditure and the school grant system in this regard. The Department makes clear it allocates special education teachers. There is no allocation of funds and, therefore, that is not an issue.

The Department states that since the system was introduced several years ago, 88 reports of potentially inappropriate use of special education teaching resources have been made to the Department, comprising 71 in primary schools and 17 in post-primary schools. It states the figures should be viewed in the context of more than 13,500 special education and training posts and 4,000 primary and post-primary schools, that there have been 1,500 school inspections, and that the majority of the issues arose having been uncovered by the Department during its own inspections. It states that in respect of the numbers we mentioned, 34 schools have confirmed they use the allocation in accordance with the guidelines, 29 schools have replied to say the allocation is being reviewed, replies are awaited for a further 20, while five schools are yet to be in a position to demonstrate compliance.

The Department is addressing the 88 schools that have been reported and goes on to state that, ultimately, the first responsibility is with the board of management, which must satisfy itself that proper controls are in place. It indicates that the board's income and expenditure accounts must be prepared for the end of each school year and must be properly audited or certified. All schools' accounts are available for audit by officers of the Department, officials and the Comptroller and Auditor General, if requested. There are 4,000 more schools, therefore, that the Comptroller and Auditor General can audit if he wishes.