Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 1 May 2001

Vol. 535 No. 1

Written Answers - Arts and Music Grants.

Jack Wall

Question:

686 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of primary schools in County Kildare which have benefited under the arts and music grants; the number of schools refused; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12299/01]

Minister for Education and Science (Dr. Woods)

The new £6.1 million arts and music grant which I recently announced was paid to all primary schools in County Kildare. The grant is intended to enable schools to purchase equipment and materials and to initiate activities to enable children to participate in visual arts, music, drama, dance and literature. The grant was based on a rate of £13 per pupil with a minimum grant of £780 being provided for schools of under 60 pupils.

In the area of music, the grant may be used to support the "making of music" through the purchase of instruments such as chime bars, cymbals, triangles, tin whistles. It can also be used to buy listening materials such as compact discs, tapes. Similarly, in the visual arts, schools will be enabled to purchase materials such as brushes, drawing and colouring materials.

It is my intention that schools would, where possible, use some of this money to organise trips to concert halls, art galleries and similar institutions, so that children experience music, visual arts, drama, dance and literature in such settings. More detailed guidelines are being finalised by my Department at the moment. These guidelines will issue to all schools shortly and will set out the scope of the grant and the purposes for which it can be used. The schools targeted under the programme were identified through a comprehensive and objective survey of all primary schools carried out in March-April 2000 by the Educational Research Centre, Drumcondra, on my Department's behalf. Over 2,300 primary schools are eligible for assistance, based on the levels of concentration of disadvantaged pupils identified in schools through this survey. Details of the schools eligible for assistance under the programme have been published.

Where schools expressed concern about the outcome of the survey in respect of their school, they were advised to make representations to my Department outlining their circumstances. Schools were informed that these representations would then be examined by the Educational Research Centre to ascertain whether their situation warranted a review. To date, five schools in County Kildare have sent written submissions to my Department requesting that their allocations made under the new programme be reviewed. These submissions are being considered at present and when the results of this process are available, the schools will be informed of the result.