Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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248. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide a list of funding allocations from his Department to an institution (details supplied) in Dublin 9 over each of the past three years; if he will provide details of proposed changes to this years budget as recently indicated by the TES section of his Department; the rationale for these changes; and the implications for existing staff levels and the likely impact on the schools which this centre serves. [26686/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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Education Centres are independent statutory bodies under Section 37 of the Education Act (1998) and are managed by voluntary Management Committees elected annually and comprised mainly of teachers.

My Department is the main source of funding for Education Centres through direct budget allocations towards administrative staff pay and operating costs. All funds held by Centres are subject to compliance with the general rules governing bodies in the public sector including the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) Circular: 13/2014 Management of and Accountability for Grants from Exchequer Funds. My Department has issued comprehensive governance guidelines with which Centres are expected to comply.

The Centre is question was allocated €180,760 in direct core funding and €39,902 towards local course funding in each of the past three years. It received an increase of €18,076 in 2016 towards minor works in the Centre.

In addition, the Centre receives significant funding for hosting and administrating a number of national programmes and from the support services which are funded by my Department for the purpose of designing and delivering continuing professional development courses and other professional support for teachers throughout the country (e.g. support service pay for room hire, photocopying, preparation and checking of travel and subsistence forms). Education Centres also raise funds through local activities and from other organisations.

I wish to inform the Deputy that officials of my Department have been engaging with the Education Centre regarding its funding and have sought a detailed account of its financial position.

In a broader context, my Department has commissioned an independent review of the governance, funding and accountability arrangements for the support services and Education Centres. The review is expected to be completed and a report made available to my Department within three months.