Síle de Valera (Clare, Fianna Fail)

The Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin, is unable to attend this debate and has asked me to respond to the Deputy on her behalf. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter as it provides me with an opportunity to outline the position of the Department of Education and Science on staffing at St. Joseph's national school, Killenummery, Dromahair, County Leitrim.

The mainstream staffing of a primary school is determined by reference to the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous year. The number of mainstream posts is determined by reference to a staffing schedule which is finalised for a particular school year following discussions with the education partners. The staffing schedule is set out in a circular which issues from the Department of Education and Science to all primary school boards of management. Accordingly, all boards are aware of the staffing position for their school in any school year.

At present, the general rule is that the schedule provides at least one classroom teacher for every 29 pupils in the school. Schools with only one or two teachers have much lower staffing ratios than this, with two teachers for just 12 pupils in some cases and so forth. The general rule, however, is that there is a teacher for every 29 children in the school. Next year, this figure will fall to 28 children per classroom teacher and in 2007-08 it will be reduced to 27 per classroom teacher.

The school referred to by the Deputy had an enrolment on 30 September 2005 of 45 pupils, which warrants a staffing for the 2006-07 school year of a principal and one mainstream teacher.

See this speech in context