Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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295. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her plans, if any, to increase the ancillary grants for minor works for secondary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44636/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Under Project Ireland 2040, the education sector will receive a total of approximately €4.4 billion capital investment over the period 2021-2025. This significant investment allows us to move forward with certainty on our ambitious plans and deliver high quality building projects, with a real focus on sustainability, for school communities across Ireland. This investment will build on the good progress being made on adding capacity to cater for demographic changes and provision for children with special educational needs. This investment will also facilitate an increased focus on the modernisation of existing school stock and help transition the school system for an era of net zero carbon by 2050.

While the standard Minor Works Grant is only payable to Primary Schools, €87m funding was provided to Post Primary Schools as an enhanced Minor Works Grant during 2020 and 2021. This additional grant funding provided good flexibility at local level to assist schools to manage in the COVID-19 environment and to put more sustainable arrangements in place in the context of Covid-19.

Furthermore, schools at Post Primary Level can apply for funding under the Department’s appropriate School Building Programmes: Summer Works Scheme for funding to undertake small-scale building works and Emergency Works Grant for funding for urgent works to schools that need resources as a result of an emergency situation, or to cater for special needs pupils who have enrolled. Since 2018, there has been in excess of €3 billion invested in Capital Infrastructure in the Education Sector for Schools at Primary and Post Primary level.

My Department provides funding to all recognised schools in the Free Education Scheme by way of per capita grants. The two main grants are the Capitation grant to cater for day to day running costs including heating, lighting etc. and the Ancillary grant to cater for the cost of employing ancillary services staff. These grants may be regarded as a common grant, from which the Board of Management can allocate according to its own priorities within the guidelines of DPER Circular 13/14, where the funding must be used for the purposes in which it was given for. I have committed to seeking funding for further increases in the capitation in future budgets.