Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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Fáilte romhat a Aire. The matter I raise seeks to discuss with the Minister for Education and Skills teacher appointment and retention figures for primary schools and particularly to ask her to revise teacher appointment guidelines in order that a new primary teacher can be appointed immediately after the 30 September pupil numbers are confirmed by the Department, namely in that same year rather than a whole year later.

I will focus on the challenges facing teaching principals around teaching and learning while also managing a school and providing leadership. I am talking about schools with seven or fewer teachers. I will refer to a case study that outlines the challenges facing six teacher schools, in particular. I am thinking of Bawnmore national school in County Galway, an exemplary school which I have visited many times. As a class teacher the principal places emphasis on teaching and learning but also gives leadership in the school. She will have 174 pupils on her books on 1 September 2016. She needs 172 to appoint a seventh teacher and she will exceed the required number by 30 September. However, she cannot appoint that seventh teacher until September 2017, a whole year later. The rules are absolutely archaic. I know of a number of schools in this position and I feel it is time to revise this rule, which is sheer madness and does not in any way support education. Another principal asked why schools would get a teacher a year after they need one.He said he has the numbers for a whole year and that is the year he needs the teacher. Instead, the rule provides that if a school has the numbers on 30 September, it must wait until the following September to get that teacher.

I propose a way around this. The Department of Education and Skills should do as follows. It should use the model the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, uses when providing resource hours to a school, the online claim system, OLCS, model. This model works really well for resource teachers and the Department should use it for the appointment of teachers in primary schools. It would have the data immediately through the online system and this would enable it to appoint a teacher immediately. I recommend that this system be used for the mainstream setting. The 30 September model has been in place for donkey's years and is out of touch with advances in technology. I believe it is being used as an excuse to not appoint a teacher for a whole year and to save a year's pay. If the Department is serious about advances such as the recent autonomy document which is totally frustrating principals, it needs to get with the programme and respond to the immediate needs of schools. Nothing is more immediate and real than when the numbers are confirmed and the pupils are attending school. They are real bums on seats.

To recap, administrative principals are faced with real challenges and we have approximately 1,300 principals in Ireland in this situation. For all of the schools with seven teachers or fewer that face these challenges, the Minister should very quickly move to provide more administrative days. That is the least that is required if it wants these teachers to be able to manage teaching and learning, to lead and manage their staff, including ancillary staff, and to deal with parents and take important calls. The current situation means that the class pupils of teaching principals will lose out. The leadership role is overwhelming in this type of setting and there is no room for reflective practice and leadership. I look forward to the Minister of State's reply and hope he has good news for me.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Healy Eames for raising this issue. I am aware she tried to raise the matter last week and am glad we are able to facilitate her this week.

The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on the Department's website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The staffing schedule includes the provision whereby schools experiencing rapid increases in enrolment can apply for additional permanent mainstream posts on developing grounds using projected enrolment.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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For what date? When can that appointment be made?

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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When the principals submit the figures for 30 September, if they can show they have projected increased development beyond that, they can -----

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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They still have to wait for a whole year later.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Please allow the Minister of State to continue.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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In addition, the staffing process includes an appeals mechanism for schools to submit an appeal under certain criteria to an independent appeals board. The staffing appeals process was extended in the 2014-15 school year to allow schools that are not gaining an additional teaching post under the developing schools criterion to submit an appeal to the primary staffing appeals board. This appeal criterion is targeted at those schools that make a significant contribution to the provision of school places and so assist the response to demographic growth within their area and as a result are under significant pressure on their class sizes at infants level. An appeals process is also available to small schools in the event that they can show that their projected enrolments are sufficient to allow them to retain their classroom teacher in the longer term. The appeals board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.

The staffing arrangements for the 2015-16 school year are set out in Circular 0005/2015 which is available on the Department website. The staffing arrangements set out the appointment and retention figures for all primary schools. Separate appointment and retention figures apply to ordinary schools with four teachers or fewer and to schools situated in the Gaeltacht with 11 teachers or fewer.

The Minister announced two new policies in February 2015 to provide some improvement to the staffing levels of some of our smallest schools and to particularly recognise the challenges faced by very small schools that are more than 8 km from the next nearest school of the same type. We have a range of these schools in Cork, Kerry, Galway, Mayo and elsewhere that I have visited and that change has been a major help. These two new policies were improved retention thresholds for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th classroom teacher in a primary school and improved appointment and retention thresholds for isolated one-teacher schools.

The number of pupils enrolled in individual schools is provided in the national school annual census and refers to the number of pupils enrolled as of 30 September in the given academic year. The national school annual census is generally returned by schools to the Department by the end of October. The allocation of all teaching posts is contingent on compliance with redeployment arrangements. The core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. The redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers is key to the Department's ability to manage within its payroll budget and ceiling on teacher numbers.

A revision to the teacher allocation process to base the staffing of a school on the enrolment of 30 September in the current school year would require teaching appointments to schools to be made on a provisional basis from 1 September, pending confirmation of enrolments on 30 September. Allocating resources based on projected enrolments for the coming school year is not practical and would impact negatively on the teacher allocation and redeployment process and the timeframes in which the process is completed.

The Minister has made provision in budget 2016 for some 2,260 additional teaching posts for our primary and post-primary schools next year. At primary level, there will be a one point improvement to the primary staffing schedule to be implemented for the 2016-17 school year. The improved staffing schedule is available on the Department website and the staffing and redeployment arrangements for all schools for the 2016-17 school year will be published early in 2016.

I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to outline to the House the position on staffing in primary schools. I will ask departmental officials to look at her suggestions, but she should understand that from the point of view of redeployment, it is difficult to change the system. However, there is a mechanism, where a school can show it is under pressure due to an increased demographic, to allow for an increase during the year.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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Thank you. I accept there has been some improvement in the appointment and retention figures for small schools. This was welcome given the severe cuts in 2012. However, I need clarification on one issue. In the case of proof of a developing school during the year, how soon can the teacher required be appointed? Can the teacher be appointed during the same school year or must the school wait until the following year?

I disagree with the Minister of State that it is not practical to deal with this because I am not referring to the redeployment issue.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The Department has a duty to refer to redeployment.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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My recommendation is that the Department should use the OLCS model to appoint the teacher right away, once the 30 September figures are provided, and certainly before 1 January and not a year later. That is my recommendation. Can the Minister of State respond on the point of developing school status. What proof is required for a school to obtain a teacher on that basis? Furthermore, why are fewer numbers required in the context of Gaeltacht appointment and retention figures? Approximately 20 fewer pupils are required for Gaeltacht schools.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The details are on the Department's website, but I will get them for the Senator. The idea behind the provision for rapidly developing schools is that numbers could change significantly from 30 September and to allow for an appointment to be made the following September.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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Is that the following September again?

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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It is based on enrolment. The Senator says she is not concerned about redeployment, but the Department is and we are concerned with remaining within budget. We have a duty to spend our budget as best we can to get as many teachers as we possibly can in order to reduce class sizes. We must do that in a co-ordinated manner and that is why redeployment is important to us. It might not bother the Senator, but it is a concern for those trying to manage the system. There must be some system.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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My issue concerns when the numbers are on the books and are confirmed on 30 September. Why is the required teacher not appointed right away?

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Will the Senator please resume her seat?

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I understand the Senator's point, but we must try to manage our budget and must have some system for that. The Senator wants to change the system to have immediate effect.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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The children are there. The Department is just saving a year's pay.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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It is not trying to save money.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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It is not educationally supportive.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The provision is not there to save on pay. We have increased the number of teachers and have committed to continuing that in the years ahead and are trying to match the demographics. We must have some organised system to facilitate redeployment and other issues. The system is based on 30 September, but there is a provision in respect of where there is rapid development in an area. That is allowed for and the system has worked quite well. I have not come across many cases where schools have felt they were left short. I will certainly raise the Senator's suggestion with the Department. I have watched how the Department operates over the past 18 months and it is constantly looking at new ways to deal with the issues.

Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)
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That is good to hear, because it is time to change this.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I will just finish.If something needs to be changed, they are willing to do it. They get it right on this issue most of the time.