Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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175. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which parents can continue to source children's school uniforms from traditional suppliers or otherwise; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40767/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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While under the provisions of the Education Act, 1998, the Board of Management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school, I am, as Minister, keen to keep back to school costs as low as possible for parents.

The Action Plan for Education aims to make the Irish education and training service the best in Europe by 2026. This plan outlines hundreds of actions to be implemented across 2016-2019. Some of the actions as part of the plan are to strengthen the focus on reducing costs for parents by:

Restoring capitation funding over a three-year period as resources permit.

Increasing the financial support for book rental schemes, in order to reduce/eliminate school book costs for parents.

Place a requirement within a Parent and Student Charter for Schools to take account of the views of their parental communities when making decisions on matters that have a financial impact for parents and;

Issue a new circular to school authorities and ETBs regarding school uniform policy and other costs and the need to put a greater emphasis on reducing the cost of school uniforms and other costs.

In relation to the proposed new circular regarding school uniform policy and other costs, my Department has recently invited all the main education partners, including the National Parent Councils, to make submissions on the issue.

My Department will now consider those submissions received and the views of the education partners will feed into the development of a new circular. In addition, my Department has also recently received correspondence from the Irish School Wear Association, a body who represent school wear suppliers and manufacturers, and the views of that body will also be considered.