Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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245. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her Department's online claims system will be amended to allow schools to place a substitute teacher in a non-filled temporary post in order to deal with the current staffing crisis in schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46775/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can inform the Deputy, that the Online Claims System (OLCS) is a system used by schools to record absences for teachers and SNA’s and where the absence is deemed to be substitutable, allow schools to input claims for payment for a substitute. A mechanism exists whereby schools can submit appointment forms directly to the Payroll Division of my Department for payment of a temporary or permanent teacher.

The Department is aware of the challenges that management bodies and schools have reported in recruiting teachers in recent years.

In response to these difficulties, the Steering Group on Teacher Supply was established in March 2018. The Steering Group is leading on the identification of the issues, the development of a programme of actions on teacher supply and the oversight of its implementation.

An Implementation Group supports the work of the Steering Group and a number of working groups are considering and reporting to the Implementation Group on various issues. These include a Data Working Group to oversee the identification and analysis of data to support teacher supply planning; the Higher Education Coordination Group to oversee the implementation of actions related to higher education; the Communications Working Group which promotes the teaching profession and oversees the development of a teacher recruitment portal; and a Policies and Arrangements Working Group which considers school and Department arrangements which affect the demand for and supply of teachers.

Consultation with education partners and stakeholders is a central feature of the teacher supply process.