The staffing of a primary school for a particular school year is determined by reference to the enrolment in the school on 30 September of the previous school year. This is in accordance with guidelines agreed between my Department and the education partners. The guidelines can only be deviated from where a school experiences rapid growth in its enrolment. In such cases, an additional post, referred to as a developing school post, may be sanctioned provisionally where the projected enrolment at 30 September of the school year in question equals or exceeds a specified figure. If the specified figure is not achieved on 30 September, sanction for the post is withdrawn.
The staffing schedule is structured to ensure that all primary schools will operate to an average mainstream class size of 29 pupils. School authorities should ensure that there is an equitable distribution of pupils in mainstream classes and that the differential between the largest and the smallest classes is kept to a minimum. I have requested my Department's inspectorate to monitor the deployment of staff and class sizes, and where necessary, to discuss with school authorities the basis on which school policy decisions in this regard have been made, and to report to my Department, where appropriate.
The enrolment of the school referred to by the Deputy on 30 September 2003 was 159 pupils, which warrants a principal plus five mainstream posts for the 2004-05 school year. On the basis of projected enrolments, a developing school post was approved provisionally in July 2004. However, the required enrolment figure at 30 September 2004 was not achieved and accordingly sanction for the post was withdrawn.
To ensure openness in the teacher allocation system at primary level, an independent appeals board is now in place to decide on any appeals on mainstream staffing. The staffing of this school for the 2004-05 school year was considered by the appeals board on 21 October 2004. The board, having considered the appeal with regard to the criteria outlined in Department circular 19/02, was satisfied that a departure from the staffing schedule was not warranted in this case. The board of management of the school was notified of the decision of the appeals board on 21 October 2004. I am sure the Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to intervene in the operation of the independent appeals board.
