Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 607: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if his attention has been drawn to the discrepancies between the ability of primary school communities in middle income areas and disadvantaged areas to raise funds voluntarily in order to ensure that the basic running costs of schools are met; if, regardless of the socio-economic profiles of primary schools, the Government has failed to provide adequate funding through the capitation grant for primary schools here and that the recent failure to increase the capitation grant in budget 2009 from €178 to €356 per pupil is further evidence of this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35772/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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The Education Budget for 2009 has provided for improvements to the overall level of funding for primary schools which will see funding increase from €167 million in 2008 to almost €190 million in 2009. The primary capitation grant has been improved by more than €21 to bring the rate to €200 per pupil. The ancillary services grant for primary schools will also be improved by €3.50 to €155 per pupil.

Taken together, these increases mean that primary schools eligible for the full ancillary services grant will get €355 per pupil — or almost €25 extra — in this school year to cover their day to day running costs, with a primary school of 300 pupils getting €7,475 more. In 2000, a primary school with 300 pupils was in receipt of less than €40,000 to meet its day to day running costs. That same school under these new rates will receive €106,500. This excludes the salary of teachers and Special Needs Assistants which are paid by the Department.

Furthermore enhanced rates of capitation funding are paid in respect of children with special educational needs who attend special schools or special classes attached to mainstream schools. The current rates range from €512 to €986 per pupil — an increase of 59% from the rate in 2006.

In addition, in the order of €14 million of grant assistance will issue to some 2,570 primary schools this November in respect of the 2008/2009 school year to assist them with their respective levels of disadvantage.

By any standards there have been very significant improvements within a relatively short period of time and the Government is committed to further increasing funding for schools as resources permit.