Seanad debates
Thursday, 3 July 2014
Adjournment Matters
Back to School Costs
3:15 pm
Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Ciarán Cannon.
John Whelan (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I, too, welcome the Minister of State. As he will be aware, despite the fact that the school holidays have only commenced, issues surrounding the back to school clothing and footwear scheme are arising already. This is a particularly stressful and arduous time for families and parents and many thousands of children benefit from the scheme annually. My concern is those families who, because of income thresholds, do not qualify for or benefit from this worthy scheme. I am speaking about working parents with two or three children of schoolgoing age who are faced on an annual basis with hefty costs in the purchase of school books. I have already been contacted by a number of parents who, while they understand they must pay for school books for their children, still cannot fathom why so many schools still do not operate the school book rental scheme. I understand the Department of Education and Skills, with the Minister, has been pioneering the scheme and that €15 million has been set aside this year for it.
What continues to baffle and astound me and parents is the reason textbooks change from one year to the next, such that siblings in second and third year cannot pass on school books to their younger brothers and sisters on entering first year. This is no longer acceptable. Despite repeated efforts to address this issue, it is still ongoing. There is no good reason school books, if properly maintained, cannot be passed between siblings in the secondary school system. Many working families will have to forgo many things this summer, including, perhaps, a holiday, in order to put money aside for school books, the cost of which can amount to hundreds of euro per child. The cost of school books for two or three children in secondary school and, perhaps, older children starting college is a heavy burden on families. I would welcome a response from the Minister of State on the efforts being made by the Department to alleviate this cost and improve access to the school book rental scheme. Will he indicate how many schools countrywide are operating the scheme, giving a county by county breakdown, and why particular schools are not availing of it when it is available to them?
Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Senator for raising this issue as it affords me an opportunity to outline to the House the position on the cost of school books. The Government shares the concern expressed by him and many parents about the high costs associated with children's attendance in school. In this regard, the Minister for Education and Skills has undertaken a number of initiatives to help to reduce the burden on parents. In relation to textbook costs, the Minister met the Irish Educational Publishers Association which resulted in the association agreeing to a voluntary code of practice. The code commits publishers to limiting the publication of new editions and maintaining editions of books in print unchanged for at least six years. This addresses one of the concerns expressed by the Senator. The Minister, when publishing the code, outlined that if publishers did not see fit to adhere to it voluntarily, there were other options open to him to ensure they did so. The publishers have also given assurances that they will sell textbooks to schools at a discount in order that schools can purchase textbooks in bulk to stock textbook rental schemes.
The Department provides approximately €15 million per annum for primary and second level schools towards the provision of school books. A grant of €11 per pupil is provided for primary schools, with DEIS schools receiving €21 per pupil. At second level, a grant of €24 per pupil is available, with DEIS schools receiving €39 per pupil. The Minister has identified book rental schemes as the most effective method of reducing the costs of schools books. In January 2013 he launched Guidelines for Developing Textbook Rental Schemes in Schools and a Guide for Parents. These guidelines encourage this practice across all schools on the education landscape.
First and second level schools were asked to make returns to the Department on book rental schemes as part of their annual returns. Information provided for the Department for September 2013 shows a high level of book rental schemes in operation. At primary level, 84% of schools operate book rental schemes, while at second level 68% of schools reported that they operated such schemes. In budget 2014 funding of €15 million over three years was provided to support the establishment of book rental schemes in primary schools that did not operate them. To establish book rental schemes, DEIS schools will receive €150 per child, while non-DEIS schools will receive €100 per child in seed capital in the next two years. This will cost approximately €6.7million of the €15 million secured in the three year period 2014 to 2016.
For primary schools with book rental schemes in place, the Minister re-examined the scheme to see if such schools could also be allocated funding. The balance of €8.3 million will be divided in 2015 and 2016 among primary schools that currently operate book rental schemes, with DEIS schools to receive €20 per pupil and non-DEIS schools €18 per pupil in these two years. Every primary school has been given the opportunity to benefit from the funding secured for the school book rental scheme.
There are some interesting developments emerging in primary schools, in particular, but also in post-primary schools, with teachers and pupils collaborating to generate their own learning content primarily through digital devices such as tablets, netbooks and so on.
I envisage a time, perhaps in the not too distant future, when there will be an opportunity for teachers to collaborate in generating their own learning content and not require the use of school books in certain school settings when studying certain school subjects.
I again thank the Senator for affording me the opportunity to respond to this matter.
3:25 pm
John Whelan (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Minister of State for a comprehensive response. I am heartened to see the commitment of the Minister to the book rental scheme, of which there is a good take-up across the country. However, there are blind spots and schools that are reluctant; therefore, some effort and co-operation are required between management of a school, the teachers, parents and students. Perhaps the Minister of State might make available in due course a list of the schools, on a county by county basis, that are availing of the scheme. We could use it as a means of encouraging parents, in collaboration with school authorities, to encourage the schools that have not yet embraced the scheme to do so. It would be a great relief to parents and help to offset this annual cost for families.
Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
We will endeavour to provide that list. Early in the process, when establishing what schools operated schemes, we surveyed the full school system but did not receive a full response. However, we will make whatever information we have available to the Senator in the near future.