Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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901. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the loss of a teacher, from September 2015, in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20609/15]

Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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902. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will retain the current teaching complement at a school (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20610/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 901 and 902 together.

The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on the Department's website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The staffing arrangements for the coming school year 2015/16 are set out in Circular 0005/2015 which is available on the website.

A staffing appeals process is available to schools under certain criteria. Details of the appeals criteria are set out in Circular 0005/2015. The final meeting of the Primary Staffing Appeals Board for 2015/16 will take place in October, 2015.

The Primary Staffing Appeals Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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903. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a school (details supplied) in County Donegal can be released from a cluster; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20615/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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The criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts to primary schools is published annually on the Department website. The staffing arrangements for the coming school year 2015/16 are set out in Circular 0005/2015 which is available on the website.

My Department introduced reforms to the teacher allocation process for resource hours in recent years which included the allocation of a network of permanent posts in base schools to cater for NCSE approved resource hours for individual pupils in schools. This network of base posts is designed to make the system work more smoothly at school level. 83% of all NCSE approved resource teaching hours in the 2014/15 school year were allocated to schools that had permanent resource base posts. There will be no changes to the location of permanent resource base posts for the 2015/16 school year.

Schools with a resource base post are required to co-operate with their neighbouring schools to ensure that any surplus capacity in the (25 hour) resource post(s) is made available to neighbouring schools to meet their NCSE approved resource hour requirements.

Schools that do not have a resource base post are required to check for available surplus capacity in base posts in neighbouring schools before making an application to the Department's Primary Teacher Allocations Section.

Where a school that does not have a base post has been approved for 25 or more NCSE approved hours, a temporary post will be sanctioned for the 2015/16 school year.

Where a school has less than 25 hours that cannot be met from other schools, sanction will be given for part time hours.

When the allocations and redeployment process for surplus permanent/CID holding teachers is completed later in the summer, schools that have complied with the published staffing arrangements will be given some discretion to operate, where possible, their own temporary local arrangements in relation to the day to day work arrangements of teachers in full-time shared posts. These arrangements are aimed at minimising any time lost in travelling between schools.