Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That" and substitute the following: "Dáil Eireann resolves that the Education (Voluntary Contributions) Bill 2021 be deemed to be read a second time this day nine months to allow for the progression of the Education (Student and Parent Charter) Bill 2019 and for that then to be taken into account in the consideration of this Bill.".

Táim fíorbhuíoch as an deis mo thuairimí ó thaobh an Bhille a chur os comhair na Dála. I share the Deputy’s desire for greater clarity and transparency for parents and guardians around voluntary contributions and I am supportive of measures which will support and enhance that. While very many schools already provide great clarity to parents and the broader school community around how financial contributions and resources are used within the school, I recognise that further work is needed to ensure that this becomes uniform across the board.

I am particularly conscious of the need for this clarity, given the financial pressures which many families find themselves under at present. However it is my strong view that Education (Student and Parent Charter) Bill 2019 is the correct approach to achieve this goal. The programme for Government contains a commitment to enact the Education (Student and Parent Charter) Bill 2019. The charter Bill has already been passed by the Seanad and completed Second Stage in the Dáil and now awaits progress to Committee Stage. It is well under way in the legislative process and has received support from many Members of the House and within the broader education sphere in its overall aims and objectives.

The overall aim of the charter Bill is to improve the level of engagement between the school community by inviting feedback, comment and observation from students and parents and by further developing a listening culture in schools. One of the key concepts of the Bill is the need for a school to consult students and their parents on individual school plans, policies and activities. The charter guidelines will set out the form and manner in which information is to be provided to students and parents, which may include publishing information on the school's own website about voluntary contributions and how they are spent. This Bill seeks to require the school to state clearly that any contribution made by parents and guardians toward the operating costs of the school is voluntary and that there is no obligation on parents and guardians to make such a contribution. This is backed up in previous legislation, the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, which already contains a provision prohibiting the charging of admission and enrolment fees for admission to or for continued enrolment in a school. This Private Members' Bill also proposes that the Department of Education publish details of the total moneys collected annually by schools, as well as details of the expenditure of those moneys.

The charter Bill requires schools to prepare, publish and implement a charter in accordance with national guidelines which will be published by me, as Minister for Education, after consultation with unions, management bodies, parents and student representatives. The charter guidelines will set out the financial information that schools must provide to students and their parents. The information provided to students and parents must include information about how the school has spent moneys that it has received, including any funding obtained through fundraising and voluntary contributions. In the charter Bill, I am putting in place an obligation on schools to be transparent in relation to voluntary contributions and to provide key information to parents on the moneys raised and how they have been spent. I am doing this in a structured and clear way as part of a school’s obligations under its own charter. Publishing data that allow for comparison of schools based on moneys raised and spent in a given year without any consideration of context could be misleading for parents and unfair to the schools concerned. For example, such comparisons would not reflect the difference between a school that consistently seeks high levels of contributions and a school that in a given year or for a short period is raising funds for a particular project or facility but typically does not seek or raise significant amounts from parents. I believe the approach taken in the charter Bill in this regard is clear, fair and balanced and will not be unduly burdensome for schools.

On the broader context of the funding of our schools, as raised by the Deputy, I know that our schools and our education system can only prosper with the right supports and the right investment. We are fortunate in Ireland to have teaching and school staff of an extremely high quality and to enjoy the support and commitment of many volunteers from board of management members to parent representatives to local community members. This must be accompanied and reinforced by strong State investment in schools and their communities. That is why I have, as Minister for Education, prioritised successive funding increases for our schools through the last two budgets. For example, yesterday I announced a €32 million investment in the DEIS programme, which provides targeted and tailored supports for students at greatest risk of educational disadvantage. This is the single most significant investment in the DEIS programme since its inception and will benefit 347 schools across the primary and post-primary sector. It will mean that nearly 25% of Irish pupils are enrolled in a DEIS school and will bring the total number of DEIS schools in Ireland to 1,194. We know that the DEIS programme works and that it has helped to dramatically increase Ireland’s school completion rate and to narrow the attainment gap between schools. The supports provided to schools vary by school type and DEIS tier, but the supports offered under the DEIS programme can include a lower pupil-teacher ratio in DEIS urban band 1 schools, separate DEIS grant funding, access to professional support services, enhanced schoolbook grant rates and access to the home school liaison and school completion programmes. We make this investment because there is no greater leveller than education. I know that the Deputies here appreciate that. We know that being supported through school is associated with positive outcomes for a person throughout their life, be it accessing further work and study opportunities or their broader well-being, which is equally important.

I know that the Covid-19 pandemic has presented considerable challenges for the education sector. I remain deeply appreciative of the leadership, dedication and courage that was shown by so many people throughout the pandemic. Between 2020 and 2022, inclusive, €860 million has been allocated for Covid-related supports and capital funding. Throughout the pandemic, this has supported an array of measures from additional staffing allocations to Covid grant payments to purchase PPE and hand sanitiser, to provide enhanced cleaning and to carry out Covid-19 related building works, such as reconfiguration works. Thankfully, while we remain vigilant in respect of the pandemic, we continue to see its effects on our children and broader society decrease.

On the more general funding streams for our schools, capitation grant funding is paid to schools to meet their day-to-day current costs such as insurance, lighting and heating. This is separate to minor works funding, which is capital funding intended to support maintenance and minor upgrade work within schools. A standard rate of capitation is paid in respect of each mainstream pupil at primary and post-primary level, with enhanced rates of capitation provided for pupils enrolled in special classes and special schools and pupils from a Traveller background. At second level, additional funding is provided to support individual programmes within the school, including the transition year grant and the leaving certificate applied programme, and to schools providing Irish-medium education. That said, I understand the need for improved capitation funding. In recent years, there has been a 7.5% increase in such funding and I intend to seek further funding increases in future budgets. All schools have received the benefit of the capitation increases awarded to date.

Finally, I am deeply conscious of the need to minimise the cost of school attendance for all families, parents and guardians. As a Government, we have a number of measures in place to help to do this, from the back-to-school grant, which last year supported over 200,000 children, to the school book grant, which this year provided over €17 million to schools to support book rental schemes for their pupils. Approximately 96% of primary schools and 69% of post-primary schools operate book rental schemes.

Just last month, the Government announced further measures aimed at mitigating the rising cost of living, including a reduction in the maximum amount payable for families to access the school transport scheme, an increase in the threshold for the working family payment and a €200 energy credit for households.

It is my strong view that the particular policy objective of this Bill will be achieved, but it will be achieved by the enactment of the charter Bill. Rather than opposing the Bill, the amendment I am seeking to move allows time for the progression of the charter Bill that will achieve the objectives set out in this Bill of improving information and transparency for parents and guardians around the collection and use of voluntary contributions by their schools, while avoiding any unintended consequences and not placing any unnecessary burden on our schools in this respect.

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