My Department’s overall annual spend on the DEIS Programme is approximately €125 million. Additional funding is provided by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection for the School Meals Programme and by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for the School Completion Programme. As the Deputy may be aware, work by my Department on a refined DEIS ID model is at an advanced stage. It is envisaged that this model will then provide the basis for development of a DEIS resource allocation system to match resources to identified need.
A list of the various supports and resources available to DEIS schools is available on my Department's website at the following link ; https://www.education.ie/en/Schools-Colleges/Services/DEIS-Delivering-Equality-of-Opportunity-in-Schools-/deis-supports-to-deis-schools-effective-from-2017-2018-school-year.pdf
The Centre for School Leadership, established in 2015, is charged with the development of a coherent continuum of professional development supports for school leaders. The Centre gives priority to leaders from DEIS schools who apply for the various programmes offered by the Centre including the Excellence through Collaborative Leadership and Management Clustering Initiative and the Principal Coaching Service.
The extension of an additional deputy principal in large DEIS schools will be considered as part of my Department's overall Budget process.