Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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160. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which extra teachers have been recruited to meet the emerging needs at primary and second level; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18539/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. 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 Deputy will be aware that Budget 2016 made provision 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. 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. The position of post-primary DEIS schools will be further enhanced for the 2016/17 school year by a change to an allocation on the basis of 17.95:1 down from 18.25:1.