Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 466: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the number of part-time administration principals who are employed (details supplied); the criteria a school and principal must fulfil to qualify for such a role; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41442/09]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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I understand that the Deputy is referring to the distinction between administrative and teaching principals in ordinary primary schools. There were 1,163 ordinary primary schools which had a full-time administrative principal in the 2008-2009 school year. A further 2,012 ordinary primary schools had a teaching principal. Primary schools with a staffing of a Principal and up to 6 mainstream class teachers have a teaching principal. This is outlined in primary circular 0002/2009 which is available on my Department's website www.education.ie.

Since the start of the 2006/07 school year my Department has introduced further initiatives to assist with reducing the administrative workload of primary school principals. Following the introduction of DEIS in the 2006/07 school year, schools which qualified for the Urban Strand (Band 1 and 2) of the School Support Programme (SSP) are entitled to the allocation of administrative principals on lower enrolment and staffing figures than apply in primary schools generally.

Additionally primary schools with a staffing of Principal plus four or five mainstream class teachers that also have a specialist autism unit established under the approval of the National Council for Special Education, are entitled to appoint the Principal on an administrative basis. The scheme of release time enables teaching principals of primary schools to be released from their teaching duties for a specified number of days annually to undertake administrative leadership and management functions. The number of days release time allowed varies between 14 and 22 and is determined by the number of mainstream class teachers in the school. Paid substitution is provided by my Department for the days that principals are on release time.

In the 2005/2006 school year my Department, following consultation with the relevant education interests introduced on a pilot basis, a system whereby a fully qualified primary school teacher may be employed to act as nominated substitute teacher for Principals in a cluster of schools taking release days. Twenty clusters have been established under the pilot scheme.