Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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175. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will improve pupil-teacher ratios at primary and second level schools over the next twelve months; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44402/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Teacher allocations to all schools are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. The criteria for the allocation of posts are communicated to school managements annually and are available on the Department website. The Deputy will be aware that I have made provision in Budget 2016 for some 2,260 additional teaching posts for our primary and post primary schools next year. These posts will provide for an improvement in the staffing schedules at primary and post primary levels, enhance the leadership and management roles of deputy principals at post-primary level by reducing their teaching time, an improvement to the scheme of release time for principal teachers at primary level and additional resource posts to meet special education needs.

At primary level there will be a one point improvement to the primary staffing schedule to be implemented for the 2016/17 school year. This will see the primary staffing schedule operate on the basis of a general average of 1 classroom teacher for every 27 pupils. At primary level lower thresholds apply for DEIS Band 1 schools.

At post-primary level the schedule will improve by .3 points, from 19:1 to 18.7:1 for the 2016/17 school year. When the allocation for guidance was brought within quota under Budget 2012 measures, DEIS schools were protected from the change by providing for a 18.25:1 allocation compared to the general 19:1 allocation. The position of DEIS schools will be further enhanced by a change to an allocation on the basis of 17.95:1.