Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 268: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the exact rates of grant assistance in relation to educational disadvantage given to schools not participating in the DEIS scheme, but who are eligible for some assistance with respect to disadvantage; the way such grant assistance is calculated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39872/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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DEIS (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools), the new Action Plan for Educational Inclusion is designed to ensure that the schools serving the most disadvantaged communities benefit from the maximum level of support available.

As a result of the identification and review processes under DEIS, 873 schools have been invited to participate in the new Programme. These comprise 670 primary schools (338 urban/town schools and 332 rural schools) and 203 second-level schools. As well as the provision being made under the new School Support Programme for schools with a concentrated level of disadvantage, financial support is provided for other primary schools where the level of disadvantage is more dispersed.

A new streamlined model for allocating financial supports has been devised which takes account of level of disadvantage and relevant financial supports already in place and replaces all other models of grants paid to schools under previous disadvantaged programmes.

Under this new model grants amounting to approximately €7.7 million due to the 670 Primary schools which are participating in the DEIS initiative were lodged to their schools' bank accounts on 17 November 2006. This is in addition to payments totalling €1 million which issued to those schools in June 2006. Provision is also being made for the issue of grants in the case of the 203 Post Primary schools which are participating in the initiative.

Schools which have not qualified for inclusion in the DEIS initiative and which are receiving additional resources, both human and financial, under pre-existing schemes and programmes for addressing concentrated disadvantage have retained these supports for 2006/2007. After that, schools will continue to get support in line with the level of disadvantage among their pupils.

Grant payments amounting to approximately €4.1 million have issued to some 1,900 primary schools, including those that are benefiting from previous schemes, to assist them with their respective levels of dispersed disadvantage. The grants paid ranged from €70 to €150 per eligible pupil and are based on schools' level of disadvantage relative to other schools as identified by the new identification process.