John Perry (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 219: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if he will provide assurances that the future of a school (details supplied) in County Sligo will be safeguarded, in the wake of the recent cuts in the education budget; if, in view of its unique status as the only boarding school in Connacht, he will ensure that this school will remain exempt from the cuts in services to ensure the future of the school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41700/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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The 2009 Budget required difficult choices to be made across all areas of public expenditure. Decisions were made in order to control expenditure and to ensure sustainability in the long term. In this respect Education, while protected to a much greater extent than most other areas of public expenditure, could not be entirely spared, and I acknowledge the impact of funding restrictions in a number of areas, including at school level. However, these are the inevitable result of the challenging economic environment and the need to manage Exchequer resources prudently.

Specific information in relation to the detailed staffing allocations that individual schools will have for the commencement of the academic year 2009/10 cannot be determined until the allocation processes have fully concluded. There is nothing exceptional in this. The allocation processes include appellate mechanisms under which schools can appeal against the allocation due to them under the staffing schedules. This is particularly relevant at post-primary level where the appellate process considers in particular any specific curricular needs of the school concerned. At post-primary there is no effective system wide redeployment scheme at present and this can mean that schools retain teachers, though over quota, and in addition discrete allocations are made to post-primary schools for example to cater for pupils with Special Educational Needs and those with Language difficulties and these allocations can also alter the ultimate position of the school in relation to any over quota position.

Schools are currently returning data to my Department in relation to their enrolment as of 30 September. My Department has commenced processing this data although all schools have not yet made their returns. The allocation processes including notification to schools will commence early in the New Year.