My Department provides capitation grants at a standard rate of £50 per pupil towards the day to day running costs of primary schools. School authorities are required to supplement the capitation grant with a local contribution, which traditionally amounted to 25 per cent of the State grant.
The State is obliged under the Constitution to provide for free primary education and to ensure that such education is available to children. This is achieved through the partnership between the State and local community which is expressed in the State grant combined with the local contribution.
I am aware that some schools have experienced difficulty in raising the local contribution. In this context I should point out that since 1995 the local contribution has been frozen at £10 per pupil in the case of mainstream schools and at £9.50 per pupil in the case of schools designated as disadvantaged. I should also point out that this year I have increased the standard rate of capitation grant from £45 to £50 per pupil, which represents an increase of 11 per cent over the 1997 rate. In line with the commitment given in An Action Programme for the Millenium, I will continue to give a clear priority to primary education and will be seeking further improvements in the level of the capitation grant as resources allow.
