Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy will be aware, delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, is the main policy initiative of the Department of Education and Skills to tackle educational disadvantage at school level. The DEIS plan sets out the vision for interventions in the critical area of educational disadvantage policy and is based on the findings of an extensive review of the DEIS programme, which involved consultations with all relevant stakeholders. In 2020, the Department will spend in the region of €125 million on the DEIS programme, providing for smaller class sizes and other supports, including additional teaching posts, home school community liaison co-ordinators, DEIS grants, enhanced book grants, curriculum supports, priority access to continuing professional development and the school excellence fund for DEIS. Furthermore, the Government has allocated more than €375 million under the roadmap for the full return to school, with comprehensive supports for a range of areas.

The Deputy mentioned SNAs, a matter which is under my remit, whereas DEIS schools are not. Nevertheless, to satisfy the Deputy's interest, there are approximately 17,000 SNAs in the country at the moment and we have made it a stipulation for the reopening of schools that every absent SNA will be replaced immediately. That is something I made sure would happen.

It is also recognised that schools may require some reconfiguration works and this is being supported by a once-off enhanced minor works grant of €75 million to prepare the buildings and classrooms for reopening, including an uplift for schools with children with special educational needs.

The Deputy asked about the DEIS model. A key part of the DEIS plan was the introduction of a new DEIS identification process based on an objective, statistics-based model to determine which schools merit inclusion in the programme. As the Deputy may be aware, following the application of this model in 2017, a further 79 schools were included in this programme and 30 schools were upgraded form band 2 to band 1 status.

As for the extension of the DEIS programme to more schools - the Deputy mentioned two in Tullow, namely, Scoil Mhuire Lourdes and Scoil Phádraig Naofa, the boys' school - an extensive body of work has been undertaken on the refinement of this model, based on the latest school enrolment data and data available from census 2016 under the HP deprivation index. The Deputy also asked about a review. A detailed quality analysis of the data has been carried out by members of the DEIS technical group, which includes representatives from the Department and the Educational Research Centre. The Deputy asked when the work will be finished. I understand that the work of this group is at an advanced stage and a consultation process with education stakeholder representatives on the technical aspect of this model commenced earlier this year. It is envisaged that this will ultimately provide the basis for a refined DEIS resource allocation model to match resources to identified need.

On the Deputy's query regarding class sizes in DEIS schools, the DEIS programme currently allows for a reduced class size in urban band 1 primary schools, with the application of a preferential staffing schedule to these schools of 20:1 at junior classes and 24:1 at senior classes to support those students at the highest risk of educational disadvantage.

I am confident that the culmination of all of this work on the refined identification model will facilitate the ultimate aim of matching resources to identified need and allow us to target additional resources at those schools that are most in need. Until this work is complete, it is not intended to extend the DEIS programme to further schools.

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