Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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Question 253: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her Department will appoint an extra full-time classroom teacher to a school (details supplied) in County Galway. [9587/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The mainstream staffing of a primary school is determined by applying the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous school year to a staffing schedule, agreed between my Department and the education partners. In accordance with the staffing schedule, the mainstream staffing of the school referred to by the Deputy for the school year 2004 to 2005 is a principal and 20 mainstream class teachers based on an enrolment of 558 pupils at 30 September 2003.

My Department will finalise the staffing schedule for the 2005 to 2006 school year shortly and thereafter notify school boards of management. According to data submitted to my Department by the board of management, the enrolment on 30 September 2004 in the school was 535 pupils. The staffing for the 2005 to 2006 school year will be determined on the basis of this figure and in accordance with the agreed staffing schedule.

As outlined in primary circular 19/02, an independent appeals board was established to adjudicate on appeals from boards of management on mainstream staffing allocations in primary schools. The appeals board operates independently of the Minister and my Department and its decision is final.

Appeals must be submitted to primary payments section, Department of Education and Science, Athlone, on the standard application form, clearly stating the criterion under which the appeal is being made, after the schedule for the 2005 to 2006 school year has issued.