Funding for voluntary secondary schools has been further enhanced by the introduction of a range of equalisation measures designed to reduce the historical anomalies in the funding arrangements for the different school types at second level. Under the terms of recent equalisation measures, the support services grant was increased by €28 per pupil with effect from September 2002. This brings the support services grant in the case of voluntary secondary schools to €116.88 per pupil from September 2002 and to €127 per pupil from 1 January 2003. This increase is in addition to the range of equalisation grants of up to €15,554 per school, €44.44 per pupil, per annum approved for secondary schools in December 2001. For a voluntary secondary school with 500 pupils, this amounts to extra funding of up to €100,000 per annum and additional grants of up to €236,761, €255,811 in the case of disadvantaged schools, towards general expenses and support services.