Written answers

Wednesday, 28 January 2009

Department of Education and Science

School Staffing

9:00 pm

Photo of Pat BreenPat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 289: To ask the Minister for Education and Science, further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 450, 451, 452, 453, 455 and 456 of 4 November 2008, if his attention has been drawn to the impact that the education cutbacks will have on a school (details supplied) in County Clare; his proposals to redress the problems for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2507/09]

Photo of Batt O'KeeffeBatt 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. These decisions were made to control public expenditure and to ensure sustainability in the long run. In this respect Education, while protected to a much greater extent than most other areas of public expenditure, could not be totally spared. The various impacts at school level in relation to both staffing and grant levels were included in the Budget day announcements. Even with the budget measures in place there will still be a significantly increased borrowing requirement in 2009.

My Department will be advising individual schools in the normal way in relation to their staffing allocations. The staffing schedule will be published and it is a transparent and clear way of ensuring that schools are treated consistently and fairly and know where they stand. The preparatory work for staffing allocations has commenced with the processing of enrolment data that has been received from schools. The staffing allocation processes including notification to schools will commence shortly. The allocation process includes appellate mechanisms under which schools can appeal against the allocation due to them under the staffing schedules. The final allocation to a school is also a function of the operation of the redeployment panels which provide for the retention of a teacher in an existing school if a new post is not available within the agreed terms of the scheme.

I have no difficulty in setting out for this House or for the public generally the overall net impact of the budget measures on aggregate levels or teacher numbers in schools for the 2009/10 school year. I can do this when the allocation process has been completed. At this time the priority for my Department within the resources available to it is to carry out these processes in a timely manner. Diverting resources in order to create staffing or funding profiles for the school referred to by the Deputy could not be justified and would in fact impede the process.

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