Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I am taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Coughlan. I thank the Senator for raising the matter and welcome the opportunity to outline the background to the Government decision to reduce the overall number of VECs.

Arising from the recommendation of the special group on public service numbers and expenditure programmes in July 2009 that the number of VECs could be reduced from 33 to 22, the Government has decided to reduce the number to 16 to deal with issues of scale and in view of the current and prospective requirements of the education sector. Accordingly, the Government has decided to merge VECs in particular counties, including those in counties Westmeath, Offaly and Laois and those in Counties Longford, Roscommon and Leitrim.

Although a number of indicators could be used to identify the scale of operation of a VEC, such as the size of its budget and the number of second level schools for which it is responsible, it is fair to say a VEC's overall budget is the broadest measure of activity because it includes adult education and other provisions not easily captured otherwise.

Each of the VECs in counties Westmeath, Offaly and Laois has an overall budget of less than €25 million. The VECs of counties Westmeath and Offaly have budgets of €21 million, while the budget for County Laois VEC is as low as €19 million. County Westmeath VEC operates four post-primary schools, County Offaly VEC operates five schools, and County Laois VEC operates four schools. The overall budgets for each of the VECs in counties Longford, Roscommon and Leitrim are less than €15 million. County Longford VEC has a budget of €14 million, County Roscommon VEC has a budget of €13 million, and County Leitrim VEC has a budget of just €12 million. These three VECs operate a combined total of 12 post-primary schools, with four in County Longford, three in County Roscommon and five in County Leitrim. These data reflect a size and scale of operation that is representative of a significant number of existing VECs, which makes restructuring of the sector a key priority.

The merging of County Westmeath VEC with the VECs of counties Offaly and Laois and the merging of County Longford VEC with the VECs of counties Roscommon and Leitrim will create VECs which have the critical mass of activity inherent in the larger administrative budgets of €61 million and €39 million respectively, while retaining the flexibility and adaptability that has characterised the VECs in these areas to date. In arriving at these combinations, account was taken of geographic factors such as the total area covered by the new VECs, the distance between the extremities of the area, the road network within the area and the alignment of other regional structures. This new structure will provide the people of counties Westmeath, Offaly and Laois and the people of counties Longford, Roscommon and Leitrim with VECs which are designed to improve the ability of the sector to support service delivery, not just in schools under the direct governance of VECs but also in the wider education sector. These new, larger VECs will be able to establish shared services and provide support services not just to VEC-run schools but also to primary schools and other second level schools in these larger geographical areas.

While the decision involves a significant departure from the current position in which there is one VEC in each of the counties concerned, the continuation of strong links between the new VECs and the counties that are merged to form them will be a fundamental feature of the new structure. Each of the counties concerned will have representation on the new VECs. The titles to be given to the new VECs are one of the detailed items that will be covered in consultations with stakeholders. The location of the headquarters of the new VECs will be determined later. This will require engagement by the Department with the VECs concerned. I thank the Senator for affording me the opportunity to respond to the House on the matter.