Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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648. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing the budget for school substitutes by 5%, 10%, 20% and 25%, respectively. [15650/20]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Substitute staff are employed by the managerial authorities of schools as replacements for teachers and Special Need Assistants  absent on approved leave from their posts.

The details outlined in the Table is based on 2019 expenditure and covers the cost of employing substitutes for teachers and special need assistants. The information relates to substitute staff employed in Primary, Secondary, Community and Comprehensive schools and includes the cost of Employers PRSI:

The information for staff employed in Education and Training Board Schools would have to be obtained from the individual ETBs.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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649. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing the budget for release days for teaching principals by 5%, 10% and 20%; and if she will consider investing in additional leadership positions within schools to facilitate principals in prioritising ensuring that schools are Covid-19 safe. [15651/20]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Budget 2020 is the third successive budget to provide for an increase in the number of principal release days.One additional release day will be allocated to each school with a teaching principal with effect from 1^stSeptember 2020.  This will bring the number of release days to 19, 25 and 31, depending on the size of school.  This is an increase from 14, 18 and 22 days since 2015.  In addition, a further four additional release days are allocated to schools with special classes.

There are arrangements in place for schools to cluster their principal release days into a full-time post which will assist teaching principals to more effectively plan their release days for the benefit of the school.

Since the moratorium on filling middle management posts was lifted in 2017,  almost 1300 leadership posts have been invested in our primary schools which has led to 1 in 3 teachers now holding promoted positions.  My Department has committed to revising the number of available Posts of Responsibility to take account of retirements during the school year.  This ensures that the current level of Posts of Responsibilities are maintained in the school system. 

Increasing the number of release days allocated to teaching principals by 5%, 10% and 20% would cost approximately €480,000, €1.1 million, and €2.2 million respectively.