Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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752. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the average cost per additional classroom provided at primary and post-primary level. [31144/21]

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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761. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of schools nationally that do not have a canteen. [31153/21]

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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763. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the average cost of building a canteen for a school. [31155/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 752, 761 and 763 together.

My Department has in place detailed design guidelines for primary and post-primary schools. These guidelines, which are available on my Department's web-site, currently provide for a standard range of servery and eating facilities in the design of new and refurbished primary and post primary schools. In primary schools, a servery of 8.0m² in area is provided. At post primary level a kitchenette, 25m² in area, is provided off the General Purpose/Dining Area. These facilities are not intended to be full commercial type kitchens where food is prepared or cooked. As these facilities are provided as part of the overall accommodation for new schools and refurbished primary and post primary schools, costs are not readily available. However, the Department publishes a Basic Building Cost limit which sets a guide for construction costs: ().

I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department does not hold details of schools with kitchen/canteen facilities or those without such facilities.

The actual cost of constructing a classroom for primary or post primary school can vary depending on a number of factors which can include, but not limited to the size and scope of the construction contract the classrooms are being constructed under, market conditions, site constraints, planning conditions, procurement method, etc. The Department's published Basic Building Costs limits apply.

Based on this rate, it is expected that the construction cost of a typical primary school classroom would be in the region €258,000.00 and €211,000.00 for a post primary classroom.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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753. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the annual capitation amounts to primary and post-primary schools since 2008. [31145/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Details of annual expenditure by my Department on capitation related grants for Primary and Post-Primary schools in the years 2009 to 2020 are provided in the table below.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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755. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing funding for book rental schemes both in primary and secondary schools by 5%, 10%, 20% and 25%, respectively. [31147/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides a book grant to all recognised primary and post primary schools within the Free Education Scheme in order to provide assistance for books including Book Rental Schemes. Under this scheme, the Department provided funding of €17.1 million in 2020 to all of these schools.

School book rental schemes have an important role to play in reducing the cost of school books for parents and in order to support the establishment of book rental schemes my Department provided €15.7 million seed capital in 2014, 2015 and 2016 to primary schools. Circa. 96% of primary schools and 68% of post-primary schools operate a book rental scheme

Additional funding of €1million provided under Budget 2020 was allocated to 102 Primary DEIS schools for a new pilot programme for the 2020/21 school year.The aim of this pilot is to provide free school books for students in the schools involved, and to support these schools in eliminating the cost of school books for parents. It will run for the period of one year and its effectiveness and impact will be monitored and evaluated before any decision is made as regards its possible extension or continuation. Under Circular 46/2013, DEIS schools receive a book grant of €21 per student. This pilot provided an additional €64 per student to increase the overall book grant rate to €85 per student enrolled in the school. This additional funding issued to schools in May 2020.

It is a matter for the Board of Management of each individual school to decide on its own policy in relation to the use of book grant funding in the school but they are expected to adopt a cost-conscious approach to the selection of books for use in their classes. The current arrangement relies on the local knowledge of the school in order to ensure a fair allocation of funds to those most in need. Therefore, my Department does not hold information in relation to these costs.

Indicative estimate of providing free primary and secondary school books to all pupils across all fully publicly funded schools based on a survey by Barnardos is €40m.

Each 1% increase in the book grant for primary and post-primary schools would cost approximately €173,000. The table below sets out the estimated cost of increasing the book grant by 5%, 10%, 20% and 25%.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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756. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of ensuring the running of a school book scheme that is entirely free to parents. [31148/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides a book grant to all recognised primary and post primary schools within the Free Education Scheme in order to provide assistance for books including Book Rental Schemes. Under this scheme, the Department provided funding of €17.1 million in 2020 to all of these schools.

School book rental schemes have an important role to play in reducing the cost of school books for parents and in order to support the establishment of book rental schemes my Department provided €15.7 million seed capital in 2014, 2015 and 2016 to primary schools. Circa. 96% of primary schools and 68% of post-primary schools operate a book rental scheme

Additional funding of €1million provided under Budget 2020 was allocated to 102 Primary DEIS schools for a new pilot programme for the 2020/21 school year. The aim of this pilot is to provide free school books for students in the schools involved, and to support these schools in eliminating the cost of school books for parents. It will run for the period of one year and its effectiveness and impact will be monitored and evaluated before any decision is made as regards its possible extension or continuation. Under Circular 46/2013, DEIS schools receive a book grant of €21 per student. This pilot provided an additional €64 per student to increase the overall book grant rate to €85 per student enrolled in the school. This additional funding issued to schools in May 2020.

It is a matter for the Board of Management of each individual school to decide on its own policy in relation to the use of book grant funding in the school but they are expected to adopt a cost-conscious approach to the selection of books for use in their classes. The current arrangement relies on the local knowledge of the school in order to ensure a fair allocation of funds to those most in need. Therefore, my Department does not hold information in relation to these costs.

Indicative estimate of providing free primary and secondary school books to all pupils across all fully publicly funded schools based on a survey by Barnardos is €40m.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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757. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of developing a seed capital scheme for expanding the school book scheme into new schools. [31149/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department provides a book grant to all recognised primary and post primary schools within the Free Education Scheme in order to provide assistance for books including Book Rental Schemes. Under this scheme, the Department provided funding of €17.1 million in 2020 to all of these schools.

School book rental schemes have an important role to play in reducing the cost of school books for parents and in order to support the establishment of book rental schemes my Department provided €15.7 million seed capital in 2014, 2015 and 2016 to primary schools. Circa. 96% of primary schools and 68% of post-primary schools operate a book rental scheme

It is a matter for the Board of Management of each individual school to decide on its own policy in relation to the use of book grant funding in the school but they are expected to adopt a cost-conscious approach to the selection of books for use in their classes. The current arrangement relies on the local knowledge of the school in order to ensure a fair allocation of funds to those most in need. Therefore, my Department does not hold information in relation to these costs.

Indicative estimate of providing free primary and secondary school books to all pupils across all fully publicly funded schools based on a survey by Barnardos is €40m.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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758. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of providing free school transport to each child availing of the school transport scheme in 2021. [31150/21]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.

The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.

In 2020, receipts from school transport charges amounted to approximately €12m (net of refunds issued during the 2019/20 schoo year). If school transport fees were to be abolished the cost of providing free transport to each child availing of school transport in the 2019/20 school year would be approximately an additional cost of €12m on the total cost of transport for the year.