Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 341: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the position regarding the school completion programmes (details supplied) which are in place. [5940/10]

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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The School Completion Programme is a key component of DEIS ( Delivering Equality of Opportunities in Schools) the action plan for educational inclusion, which discriminates positively in favour of children and young people who are at risk of early school leaving. The Programme, focusing on young people between the ages of 4 and 18 years, supports 468 primary and 223 post-primary schools in 124 School Completion Programme sites across 26 counties, with 3 SCP projects involving 8 post-primary schools and 12 primary schools participating in Co. Longford and Co. Westmeath.

The main aims of the School Completion Programme are:

To retain young people in the formal education system, or equivalent, to successful completion of the Senior Cycle.

To improve the quality of participation and educational attainment of targeted children and young people in the educational process.

To bring together all local stakeholders (home, school, youth & community/statutory and voluntary) to tackle early school leaving

To offer positive supports in primary and post-primary schools towards the alleviation of educational disadvantage

To influence in a positive way policies relating to the alleviation of early school leaving in the school system.

Some €31million has been allocated to the School Completion Programme in 2010. Funding is provided to projects based on an integrated approach involving the schools, parents, relevant statutory, voluntary and community agencies to devise and implement strategies for the whole-school, targeted strategies for individual students, and those who are already outside of the formal system. Provision includes in-school, after-school, out-of-school and holiday time supports to enhance the young person's readiness to benefit from education.

School Completion Projects, through their annual Retention Plans, implement a range of flexible, age-appropriate interventions grounded in experience and best practice. Following a consultative process with projects, the National Coordination Team has established that the supports implemented throughout the 124 SCP projects closely match those identified in international research as the most effective. The supports identified as most effective within SCP are extra-curricular activities, after-school/homework clubs, one-to-one support, personal development, meal clubs and holiday programmes.

From 1st September, 2009, a single co-ordinated School Support Programme involving the Home School Community Liaison Scheme, the School Completion Programme and the Visiting Teachers Service for Travellers has been integrated under the National Educational Welfare Board. This development puts in place structures to facilitate closer integration of the services at local, regional and national levels, increase effectiveness and help bring about real and meaningful improvements in services, to confront in a cohesive way, the underlying causes that impact negatively on the school life of children, particularly as they relate to school attendance, retention and attainment.

My Department will forward details of individual schools in the Longford and Westmeath areas which are currently participating in the programme as well as details of the allocations to each project and programmes directly to the Deputy.