Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister, Deputy Reilly, for taking this Topical Issue. I am aware that he spoke on this topic in the past week or so and I very much welcome his commitment to ensuring that the school completion programme is maintained. Having said that, it is a reality that the co-ordinators of these programmes have received no certainty or clarity from Tusla or the Minister. They have not been informed as to whether there will be further reductions in funding next year or dramatic, deep-rooted change to the programme, or whether it will be overhauled entirely. That is causing a lot of stress.

I recently met nine principals from DEIS schools in my constituency and our local co-ordinator on the question of the future and security of the school completion programme. They have gone through a very turbulent time, which goes without saying, in terms of a reduction in funding. They have moved from a model of part funding from the European Union to the Department of Education and Skills, and are now under the umbrella of Tusla. There has been a lot of chopping and changing, which has contributed to the sense of uncertainty.

The service nationally has experienced a substantial cut in funding from €32.9 million in 2008 to €24.7 million in 2014. It is fair to say that while everybody understands the enormous economic challenges the State has faced since 2008, it is essential that the most vulnerable in our society are protected. It is also essential that programmes that are proven to produce results are protected, that their funding is ring-fenced and that they are supported and grow. That has to be a priority and I would very much welcome any statement from the Minister in that regard, in terms of a commitment to expanding and continuing the school completion programme because it is working. I know from first-hand experience in my constituency, which has some of the most deprived areas in the whole country, that children who are extremely vulnerable to mitching school and early school leaving benefit from this programme. It is working and all of the principals in all of the schools in my constituency would back that up 100%, as would teachers.

We are awaiting the result of an ESRI report on this matter. I understand it was due in March and has still not been forthcoming. It has not been published; I am not sure whether it has been provided to the Minister or Tusla but it has not been made public. It is anxiously awaited and, incidentally, ties in with the very good and comprehensive report the ESRI published in recent weeks on the overarching challenges facing DEIS schools. It was a wide-ranging report which investigated the effectiveness or otherwise of DEIS schools. An interesting recommendation, which I am sure the Minister has read in detail, is the concentration of resources on band 1 schools in urban areas, which are the most vulnerable and where, unfortunately, the least amount of progress is being made.

The ESRI recommendation focuses on DEIS schools but there is a reference to the school completion programme. It very clearly and concretely recommends the concentration of resources in the most vulnerable schools in urban areas. I would like to hear whether the Minister would support a similar focus in terms of the school completion programme, that is, the concentration of resources in the most vulnerable areas. It is logical and is what this programme is all about, namely, ensuring that every citizen, in particular every child in our State, is cherished and has equal opportunities. We know that is not the case.

The ESRI report on DEIS schools tells us what we already know, but it is worth reiterating. DEIS schools are more likely to have students who come from unskilled, manual or non-employed households, parents who have lower levels of education and families with lower household incomes. Children in such schools are more likely to come from lone parent families. There is a range of factors which are entirely predictable and mean these children are more vulnerable and require much greater intervention. I am very keen to hear the Minister's thoughts on that report and how it directly affects the programme.

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