Brendan Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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I wish my constituency colleague, the new Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy James Reilly, well in his new post. If the Minister for Education and Skills has a moment to spare, this issue crosses over into her remit and I would appreciate if she could bear with us.

As the school holidays kick in and staff and students take a well-earned rest after another school year, this is an opportune time to take stock and begin planning for the upcoming school year. We must also acknowledge that there are children all over the country in primary and secondary schools who are still in education due in no small part to the school completion programme, SCP. The programme was set up as part of the Department of Education and Skills’s delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, strategy. Its aim is to increase the numbers of young people staying in primary and secondary school and in doing so to improve the numbers of pupils who successfully complete the senior cycle or the equivalent.

The SCP operates in 470 primary schools and 224 post-primary schools. There are 124 local school completion projects employing 248 full-time, 627 part-time and 2,211 sessional and other staff. It focuses on targeting and providing supports to young people most at risk of early school-leaving. It involves identifying and supporting children at risk of not reaching their potential in the educational system because of poor attendance, participation and retention. It does this via initiatives such as breakfast clubs, homework clubs, after-school supports, mentoring programmes and therapeutic interventions. The programme works to ensure the schools have in place the appropriate procedures to monitor, identify and respond to attendance, participation and retention issues. One key potential crisis point for any vulnerable child is the move from primary to secondary school. The SCP works to implement transfer programmes to support young people making that transition.

The SCP is highly valuable but it does not seem to be highly valued. The scheme targets vulnerable children most at risk of falling out of education. I have spoken to SCP officers who deal with very difficult situations, such as children of families who cannot afford new shoes, or to purchase uniforms. Many children in this programme would not have breakfast before going to school, nor would they have a packed lunch in their bags or money to buy lunch. They do not have money for school books in many cases. Many deal with difficult circumstances at home. It is therefore vital that these children are given every support to stay in education. The scheme has been cut by approximately 33% since 2008. There are concerns about a further 6.5% cut this September. I ask that any cuts due to be implemented this coming school year be halted until the current programme review of the SCP has been completed. An answer I received to a parliamentary question put in May to the previous Minister for Children and Youth Affairs stated:

It is anticipated that the review will assist in identifying the reforms necessary to consolidate the programme on a sustainable footing for the future and ensure that available funds are targeted to those services which provide the greatest contribution to educational outcomes for pupils at risk of educational disadvantage.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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I thank my constituency colleague for raising this important issue.

The school completion programme, SCP, aims to retain young people in the formal education system to completion of senior cycle and to generally improve their school attendance, participation and their retention in education. The SCP is a targeted intervention, aimed at those school communities which are identified through the Department of Education and Skills's DEIS action plan for educational inclusion. The programme involves 124 locally managed projects and related initiatives which operate across 470 primary and 224 post-primary schools. It provides targeted supports to some 36,000 children and young people who may be at risk of educational disadvantage.

The projects within the SCP are each managed and directed by a local management committee, which includes representatives of schools, parents, and other education stakeholders in the locality. The programme's project model approach gives local communities the autonomy to devise innovative approaches to address the needs of young people most at risk of early school leaving. Typically, projects offer homework clubs; breakfast clubs; mentoring programmes; learning support; social and personal development programmes to young people; and out of school supports, including music, art and sports and a range of activities during holiday periods.

As with all major spending programmes, the SCP budget was subject to examination under the terms of the 2011 comprehensive review of expenditure, CRE. This process identified a requirement for savings of 6.5% per annum across the programme over the period 2012 to 2014. In 2014, an allocation of €24.756 million has been provided for the programme.

Since its establishment, the Child and Family Agency has operational responsibility for the SCP, including the allocation of funds to projects within the programme. The process involves local projects developing annual school retention plans with detailed service proposals for the forthcoming school year and the determination of the allocations to be provided on that basis and having regard to the CRE savings requirements. I have been advised that proposals have yet to be formulated by the agency for the funding for SCP projects in the coming 2014-2015 academic year. As an initial step the agency invited all SCP projects to commence planning for the next cycle of the programme within the available funding parameters. The agency has commenced the detailed process of evaluating and approving the 2014-15 school retention plans for individual projects.

It anticipates that local projects will be notified of the outcome of the process and of their allocations for the 2014-15 year in advance of the start of the new school year. The agency will continue to work closely with local management committees, schools and local school completion programme co-ordinators to assist projects through the process. The potential for any changes in the funding allocated to this programme in future years is a matter to be considered in the Estimates and the budgetary process, having regard to the resources available to the Government.

The Deputy may be aware that a review of the school completion programme has commenced. The review is an important initiative in the planning of the future development of the school completion programme. The objectives of the review are to identify best practice in the provision of support to children and young people to assist their retention in school, to clarify roles and responsibilities in the programme and to build on the valuable learning and experience acquired to date. It is anticipated that the review will assist in identifying the reforms necessary to consolidate the programme on a sustainable footing for the future and to ensure available funds are targeted to those services which provide the greatest contribution to educational outcomes for children and young people at risk of educational disadvantage. It is envisaged that the review will be completed during the 2014-15 academic year.

Brendan Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. Labour Party Deputies have fought hard to protect funding and support for schools participating in the DEIS programme. When cuts were announced in previous budgets, we successfully fought to have them reversed. The Minister was at the Cabinet table at that time and was party to such positive outcomes. The cuts to the school completion programme represent an under-the-radar cut to schools involved in the DEIS programme and, crucially, to DEIS pupils. We need to see these cuts halted and ultimately reversed. There is an economic recovery under way. It is slow but it is happening. People will want to see that recovery being reflected in their pockets, but it will also need to be measured in other ways, for example by reference to the manner in which we protect and support vulnerable people in our society and help those who have been let down by this country's passive system of social inclusion, education and welfare. These are very important measures from the perspective of the Labour Party.

The school completion programme is an important scheme that provides real help for children who need it. If we protect and support it now, our young people and by extension our communities will benefit from it into the future. Given that a review of the programme is under way, would it not be prudent to await the outcome and the recommendations coming from that process before the further cuts proposed for September 2014 are made? That is the essential point of today's debate. It is not an expensive scheme, but it has an invaluable impact on vulnerable children in terms of keeping them in education and ultimately offering them a more secure path in life. I believe the resources for this scheme should be ring-fenced. I am willing to argue that point with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Minister feels there is value in so doing and that it would assist him in his own efforts.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for his expressions of support for this important programme. We know that any money invested in children yields the biggest return, regardless of whether it is spent in health, in education or on an important educational scheme like this one. This programme is aimed at the most vulnerable people, including those likely to leave education before they have had an opportunity to benefit fully from it. The review is being overseen by a steering committee involving officials from the Departments of Children and Youth Affairs and Education and Skills and the Child and Family Agency. The Minister for Education and Skills was with us a few minutes ago. The review is being carried out by the Economic and Social Research Institute following a procurement process that was managed by the agency. Rather than cutting any services, the review will look at areas where moneys can be saved and efficiencies can be put in place. Obviously, we have to be wise to the fact that there have been some reductions already. I will of course discuss this matter with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Minister, Deputy Howlin.