Vol. 536 No. 2
463 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of schools benefiting from the new programme, educational disadvantage in primary schools, urban; the number of schools recently informed that they were having the benefits of this initiative withdrawn; and the reasons in this regard. [13744/01]
The Deputy is aware of the new programme, Giving Children an Even Break, to tackle educational disadvantage which was launched by me in January of this year. The new programme has both an urban and rural dimension. A total of 815 schools have been invited to participate in the urban dimension of the new programme. I am committed to supporting urban schools with the highest concentrations of disadvantaged pupils in the maintenance of maximum class sizes of 20:1 in junior classes, infants through second class, and 29:1 in senior classes, third through sixth class, over the three year period. In addition, all participating schools will receive additional funding to be used in the provision of a range of in school and out of schools supports for the pupils concerned over the three year period.
The retention of the additional teacher posts under the new programme is subject to existing enrolment levels being maintained over the three year period of the programme and the implementation of the maximum class sizes within the schools concerned. In line with normal staffing arrangements for national schools, teacher post allocations for the purpose of the programme in respect of the current school year are also determined by reference to enrolments in junior and senior classes at 30 September in the previous school year.
Some schools which were also included the new programme were due to have teaching posts allocated under that programme withdrawn at the end of the current school year owing to falling enrolments. In view of the special nature if the scheme, I have authorised the retention of existing levels of staffing up to the 2002-03 school year pending experience of the enrolments in September 2001.
