Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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522. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there are plans to make additional funding available for schools if the capitation and ancillary grant does not cover the cost of a cleaner and caretaker; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29202/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Department is committed to providing funding to recognised primary and post-primary 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 such as heating, lighting, cleaning, insurance and general up-keep, and the ancillary grant to cater for the cost of employing ancillary services staff. Schools have the flexibility to use capitation funding provided for general running costs and ancillary funding provided for caretaking and secretarial services as a common grant from which the Board of Management can allocate according to its own priorities, except for the employment of relevant secretaries as per Circular 0036/2022.

The current standard rate of capitation grant is €200 per pupil in primary schools and €345 per student in post-primary schools.

Primary schools with fewer than 60 pupils are paid the capitation and the ancillary grants on the basis of having 60 pupils.

As part of the capitation package in Budget 2025 the Department is pleased to have secured over €30 million as a permanent increase in capitation funding to assist schools now and longer term with increased day-to-day running costs. This represents an increase of circa 12% on current standard rates and enhanced rates. This increase is on top of the circa 9.2% increase from last year’s budget. This will bring the standard rate of capitation grant to the level of €224 per pupil in primary schools and €386 per student in post-primary schools from September 2025. Enhanced rates will also be paid in respect of pupils with special educational needs and Traveller pupils. Schools should also ensure that they are availing of the available OGP procurement frameworks and getting best value for money for all school expenditure.

In addition to these grants, €45 million in cost-of-living supports issued in November 2024 to support all recognised primary and post-primary schools in the Free Education Scheme. This additional funding announced in Budget 2025 is designed to assist schools with increased day-to-day running costs such as heating and electricity. This funding was paid at a rate of €36 per pupil in primary schools and €55 per student in post-primary schools. Enhanced rates were also paid in respect of pupils with special educational needs and Traveller pupils.

After Forsa accepted the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) agreement about salaries and leave for grant-funded school secretaries, the secretaries who accepted the agreement were added to the Department of Education’s payroll from September 2023. Because of this, the ancillary-related grant funding has been updated, since schools are no longer paying these salaries directly.

From January to August 2025, grant funding will be reduced based on the salaries schools paid to grant-funded secretaries before they agreed to the new terms and conditions. Schools have given the Department the salary information, and this is now being used to reduce the ancillary-related grant funding.

To date we have issued correspondence to schools with details of the arrangements for: September to December 2023, January to August 2024, September to December 2024 and January to August 2025.

Since the 2023/24 school year, schools have been paid the usual ancillary/SSSF grant amount, minus the amount that schools previously paid to grant-funded secretaries prior to their acceptance of the new terms and conditions. Schools should be in no way disadvantaged by this as the grant is reduced only by the amount that they previously paid to their secretaries.

In some situations, the salaries of ancillary staff in a particular school may have been higher than the ancillary grant due to the school, and the school may have funded this difference via other revenue streams.

In situations where the salary that a school was paying their secretary was higher than the ancillary grant due to the school, prior to them being added to the Department of Education’s payroll, then the ancillary grant is reduced to NIL. This should not impact the school’s financial position.

As part of a package agreed with Fórsa, the trade union representing school secretaries and caretakers, following a series of engagements at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) in 2022, the implementation of revised salary and annual leave entitlements for school secretaries, under circular 00396/2022 is now fully operational.

Lessons learned from that process are now playing a key role in the drafting and implementation of a similar deal to be offered to grant funded school caretakers.

The Department is committed to ensuring that school caretakers will be afforded the opportunity to avail of a similar package to that which was accepted by school secretaries in the near future. As the deal to be offered to caretakers, when agreed, will be similar to that implemented for school secretaries, it is not currently anticipated that the granting of public servant status, and the entitlements which arise therefrom, will form part of the proposal.

The Department of Education is not the direct employer of former grant funded school secretaries, but rather has been providing a payroll service for this cohort of secretaries with effect from 1st September 2023.

In the normal course, there are ongoing discussions with the public service unions on any and all matters relating to pay agreements. Any review of changes to the employment of school caretakers or other pay mechanisms, can occur only under those processes and any such proposals would need to be considered in detail by the Department, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, and the relevant unions.

The practice of paying for caretaking services under grant schemes continues whilst work is ongoing to agree a similar package to that achieved for school secretaries.

The Department of Education is aware that costs and funding can pose a problem for schools, and is constantly working to address this matter, and to enhance the financial and other supports available to schools.

While not wishing to pre-empt the outcomes of any future Budget negotiations or fiscal parameters agreed by Government, the Department of Education will continue to seek and prioritise the funding required to meet the ongoing costs of running schools.

The programme for government commits to increasing capitation funding to schools of all types to ensure that schools can meet their elevated day-today running costs.

The Financial Support Services Unit (FSSU), funded by the Department, is an important source of advice and support to schools on financial matters, including budgeting and cashflow management. Contact details for FSSU can be found on www.fssu.ie.

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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523. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills what funding or grants schools can avail of to update their library space. [29214/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The minor works grant and ICT grant form part of a range of grants and supports provided to schools.

The Department recognises the importance of the Minor Works Grant to primary schools. The minor works grant is provided to all primary and special schools to enable them undertake small-scale minor maintenance and improvement works on a devolved basis.

Under Project Ireland 2040, a commitment was given that the Minor Works Grant would be paid in either December or January of the school year to all primary schools, including special schools. In recent years my department’s approach has been to pay the Minor Works Grant to schools in advance of the start of the following school year in order to facilitate a better lead in period for schools to plan any maintenance or minor works during the summer period.

As the Deputy may be aware, the purpose of the recently announced Climate Action Summer Works Scheme (CASWS) is to devolve funding to individual school authorities to undertake small-scale building works which, ideally, can be carried out during the summer months or at other times that avoid disrupting the operation of the school. I recently announced details in respect of the Climate Action Summer Works Scheme 2026 onwards, the details of which can be found at the below link:

www.gov.ie/en/press-release/ae936-minister-mcentee-announces-opening-of-national-consultation-on-post-primary-guidance/.

The CASWS will play an important role in the maintenance and upgrade of the condition of our schools. The CASWS will operate on a multi-annual basis for categories of works such as roof works, window replacement, mechanical, electrical works and curricular requirements which could include the refurbishment of rooms.

My Department also provides funding for loose furniture and equipment (F&E) for schools in various ways, depending on the appropriate delivery mechanism. To make an application for loose furniture the school should submit their application to furnitureequipment@education.gov.ie.