Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In 2012, the threshold for qualifying for two teachers was 12 pupils but now, unless the nearest school is over 8 km away, the threshold is 19. The particular school to which I refer is already disadvantaged, with 41% of pupils in lone-parent families. In the past, the school would have been entitled to Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools, DEIS, status and the supports that come with that but, unfortunately, the Government blocked new entrants to the DEIS scheme.

When I wrote to the Minister for Education and Skills about this matter, he made the point that the staffing appeals board is an independent body but the board operates according to the criteria set down by the Department. Furthermore, the new budget 2017 proposal does not guarantee that St. Brendan's national school will be granted another teacher because it simply states that one-teacher mainland schools will have the "capacity to apply" to the staffing appeals board for an extra teacher. Schools already have that right and capacity at the moment.

Will the Minister consider this issue again? The future for the school to which I refer is pretty bright. The numbers enrolled are expected to increase and it is totally unfair not to grant it a second teacher.

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