Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 518: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her attention has been drawn to the fact that the first, second and third multi-class group of a school (details supplied) in County Wexford consists of 38 pupils while the other two multi-class groups each have 20 pupils; if this arrangement complies with the Department's guidelines on class size; the steps she will take to ensure that no multi-class group in this school will be greater than 20 pupils in the current and future academic years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35133/05]

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, which is issued annually to all primary schools.

The staffing of the school referred to by the Deputy is a principal and two mainstream class teachers based on an enrolment of 77 pupils on 30 September 2004. The school also has one permanent learning support-resource post under the new general allocation system.

The system for allocating teachers to primary schools is based on ensuring an overall maximum class of 29 in each school. Where some classes in a school have class sizes of greater than 29, it is generally because a decision has been taken at local level to use their teaching resources to have smaller numbers in other classes. I have requested the inspectorate of the Department of Education and Science to monitor the deployment of staff and class sizes and, where necessary, to discuss with school authorities the basis on which school policy decisions in this regard have been made, and to report to the Department, where appropriate.

Significant improvements have been made in the pupil-teacher ratio and in average class size in recent years at primary level. The most recent figure available for average class size at primary level refers to the 2003-04 school year, when the average class size was 23.9, down from 26.6 in 1996-97. The pupil-teacher ratio at primary level, which includes all the teachers, including learning support and resource teachers, has fallen from 22.2:1 in the 1996-97 school year to a projected 17.1:1 in 2004-05. As I indicated in my statement on the recently published Estimates, I have secured sufficient funding to provide for even smaller classes in our primary schools in the next school year. The Minister for Finance has committed to a further reduction in class size in the following year.

To ensure openness and transparency in the system an independent appeal board is now in place to decide on any appeals on mainstream staffing. The criteria under which an appeal can be made are set out in Department primary Circular 19/02 which is also available on the Department's website.