Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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398. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if seconded teachers to patron management bodies that have a religious ethos are restricted in their job descriptions to duties that do not involve the promotion of a particular religion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46632/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My Department provides annual grants to the recognised management bodies at primary and post primary level to assist them in providing management support to the schools in their sectors. Management bodies such as CPSMA, Educate Together, Church of Ireland Board of Education at primary level or at second level the JMB/AMCSS, ETBI and ACCS provide important support services for schools on employment, legal, financial and other matters. The individual management bodies remit reflects the particular patronage of the schools which they serve for example the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA) provides support services to primary schools under catholic patronage and it is a similar position in relation to each of the other management bodies.

The teacher secondment scheme operated by my Department is designed to facilitate the temporary assignment of a teacher to a vacant position in a host organisation, where the work to be carried out by the seconded teacher is of clear benefit to the education system.   

In that regard, my Department has approved a number of secondments to school management bodies. However, the precise nature of the duties assigned by a management body to a particular employee or secondee are a matter for the management body concerned and the individual employee/secondee as appropriate.