Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 108: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will clarify if it is the base school which needs the 15 hours to retain the full time special education needs resource post; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40078/11]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 109: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of full time learning support posts a school is entitled to if they have 28 allocation hours as a result of budget 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40079/11]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 108 and 109 together.

The Deputy will be aware that as part of the budget announcements the teacher allocation processes will be reformed to provide greater autonomy to schools and to facilitate and simplify the work involved in creating shared posts, and in carrying out redeployment and recruitment. As part of this process 1,600 primary schools throughout the country will be identified by the Department as base schools for about 2,450 full-time resource only posts to cater for allocations determined by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).

A school's approved NCSE allocation for the current school year will be used as a basis for the distribution of these full-time resource posts (which comprise 25 hours of teaching time) throughout the school system. The teachers in these full-time permanent posts will undertake NCSE approved resource hours in the base schools or in neighbouring schools. Through his/her role in allocating resources the local SENO will have an oversight role in relation to the sharing arrangements between schools so that they operate as efficiently as possible and time loss due to travel between schools can be kept to a minimum. Schools that are unable to have their NCSE approved resource hours met from this network of full-time resource posts will be allocated mainly part-time temporary posts. My Department will be notifying schools in January of the new staffing arrangements for 2012/13 school year.