Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 142: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of children failing to make the transition from primary to secondary schooling; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5590/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Statistical returns made to my Department my primary principals show that, between October 2003 and September 2004, 237 pupils from across all standards left ordinary classes in national schools and did not emigrate or go to any other school within the State. In addition, over the same period, 548 pupils left primary school and the primary principal was not able to confirm if they went on to second level or not. As their destination was not known to the primary principal, it is not possible to say with confidence whether these children made the transfer to second level. Pending the introduction of an individualised primary pupil database which will allow us to track more accurately children's enrolment at school, it is not possible to provide more accurate information or to verify the accuracy or completeness of the above numbers.

The new action plan for educational inclusion, DEIS, delivering equality of opportunity in schools, is designed to ensure that the educational needs of children and young people from disadvantaged communities are prioritised and effectively addressed. The plan provides for a standardised system for identifying levels of disadvantage. A new integrated school support programme will bring together a number of existing interventions in schools with a concentrated level of disadvantage and build upon these. The Department and the National Educational Welfare Board will work together to ensure that an integrated approach to children at risk is adopted.

Some of the key features of the new programme will be a shift in emphasis away from individual initiatives, each addressing a particular aspect of the problem, to a multi-faceted and integrated approach; the development of effective transfer programmes by building on the existing work of the home school community liaison scheme and the school completion programme — the latter will be integrated into the school support programme; a renewed emphasis on the involvement of parents and families in children's education in schools; planning at school and school cluster level; and target setting and the measurement of progress and outcomes to ensure that the increased investment is matched by an improvement in educational outcomes for the children and young people concerned.

Approximately 600 primary schools and 150 second level schools will be included in the new plan. The plan will be introduced on a phased basis, starting in the current school year. It will involve an additional annual investment of €40 million on full implementation and approximately 300 additional posts across the education system.