Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 210: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she intends to restore equity and fair play and end the discrimination against ordinary national schools with four to 13 teachers by bringing appendix A of circular 15/05 into line with appendices B and C of the same circular. [9904/06]

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.

Under current arrangements the enrolment figure required for the appointment of a mainstream class teacher in an ordinary school is the same as that which applies in the case of Gaeltacht primary school. However the enrolment figure for appointment of a mainstream class teacher in a Gaelscoil is lower in the case of posts from the third up to and including the eleventh mainstream class teacher.

Primary circular 0023/2006 outlining the revised staffing schedule for the 2006-07 school year is available on my Department's website and hard copies will issue to schools as soon as possible.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 211: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if there is an agreed enrolment policy for primary schools in a town in County Kildare; if she will review the enrolment policy for a school (details supplied) within that town; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9924/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The school to which the Deputy refers is a new school which opened in September 2005. It currently accommodates two junior infant classes. When fully occupied, the school will operate as a two-stream 16-classroom school. To enable it develop in this manner, it can only enrol two junior infant classes annually. This incremental development is common to all newly established schools to ensure that a shortage of accommodation at the school is avoided by an over enrolment in the early stages and crucially, to ensure that the enrolments and staffing levels in other schools in the area, where older pupils would inevitably be drawn, are not adversely affected.

My Department is awaiting details of an agreed enrolment policy from the primary providers in the area to ensure that the development of the new school is underpinned as envisaged. It is satisfied that, in accordance with its remit, the totality of the primary accommodation available in the area provides sufficient places to cater for all those seeking places.