Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Question 47: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the amount that has been spent each year over the past five years by his Department on the rental of prefabs for the purpose of using them as classrooms; and if he will provide a breakdown for each county. [12938/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The amount spent on renting temporary accommodation at primary and post-primary level, including – but not limited to - prefabricated accommodation from 2008 to 2011 is outlined on a county by county basis in the table. In 2007 €35.5m was spent on rented accommodation and a breakdown by county is not readily available for that year.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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Question 48: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the amount of money that has been spent on refurbishment and extension works for small schools, four teachers and less, per year, per county, per size of school for the past ten years; his views that forcing the amalgamation or closure of such schools would be a waste of taxpayers' money; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12946/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The expenditure information on refurbishment and extension works is not readily available within my Department and it would require a very substantial amount of administrative time to identify and extract the full range of details sought. The level of resources required to compile the information sought would not be warranted. Should the Deputy require information on a particular school I would be glad to provide it.

However, I wish to advise the Deputy that the decision making authority for any amalgamation belongs to the Patron of a school, subject to the approval of the Minister for Education and Skills. My Department's role is to facilitate any such proposal or discussions between the relevant parties. The initiative for an amalgamation may come from a variety of sources, such as parents, staff, Board of Management and Patron. I have said on several occasions that any decisions to amalgamate schools will be voluntary and follow decisions taken at a local level. The financial consequences associated with amalgamations would also have to take into account the continuing requirement to manage expenditure within the context of overall educational policy and the level of budgetary provision available at the time.

It is worth noting that there are 3,200 primary schools across Ireland. Approximately, one third of those schools has less than 86 pupils and, as a result, has far lower average class sizes. For example, a two teacher school with 32 pupils has an average class size of 1 teacher for 16 pupils. In contrast, a typical 10 teacher school with 272 pupils has an average class size of 27.2 pupils. In that regard, the existing staffing schedule acts as a disincentive for small schools to consider amalgamations. At a time of great strain in our public finances, we have to ensure that the very valuable but limited resources available for the education system are used in the best way possible.