Officials of my Department met with representatives of County Kildare Vocational Education Committee on two occasions recently, namely 25 November and 23 March, to discuss the administrative staffing levels of the vocational education committee. The vocational education committee sought an increase in the numbers of clerical and administrative staff and an improvement in the grading structure. The vocational education committee also sought an increase in the number of caretaking and cleaning staff.
The representatives of the vocational education committee were advised that the provision of additional clerical and administrative staff would be considered in the context of an analysis of the non-teaching staffing position in the vocational education committee sector generally. The Deputy will be aware that the numbers of clerical and administrative staff in the vocational education sector are governed by the Government's policy relating to numbers in the public service. At present, the analysis of the non-teaching staffing in the entire vocational education committee sector is underway in my Department. The claims of County Kildare vocational education committee will be considered in the course of this review.
The Department is also considering the allocation of cleaning hours to Confey Community College and a decision will be communicated to the vocational education committee shortly.
