Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 554: To ask the Minister for Education and Science, further to parliamentary Question No. 419 of 1 July 2008, if funding was allocated to a school (details supplied) in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37437/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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As part of the expansion of the Small Schools Scheme, a grant of € 380,000.00 was sanctioned to enable the school in question to extend and modernise the school building. The scheme is not intended to leave schools with significant fundraising needs; rather the terms of the Scheme require the schools to tailor the scope of capital works commissioned to the available funding. The decision on whether to continue participating in the scheme or to drop out, if the scope of build is more than the funding envelope permits, is a matter for each school authority.

A central tenet of the devolved scheme is that the school, granted discretion and funding, must equally accept responsibility for prioritisation, adherence to statutory regulations, as well as control of costs and ensuring value for money. In this instance, having examined the school's application for additional funding, the Department is of the opinion that the project should be completed within the amount originally allocated and accordingly, further grant aid was refused. In the circumstances, the Board of Management is required to take the necessary steps to ensure that the scope of the works undertaken matches the funding allowed.