Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2006
767 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Science when adequate resources will be provided to the Educational Welfare Board with a view to ensuring that the Board can proactively pursue relevant issues; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26457/06]
View answer771 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Science when she expects to provide sufficient staff to ensure the workability of the educational welfare service throughout the country; the number of staff to date employed on a county basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26461/06]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 767 and 771 together.
The National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) was established under The Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 as the single national body with responsibility for school attendance. The Act provides a comprehensive framework which promotes regular school attendance and tackles the problems of absenteeism and early school leaving. The general functions of the Board are to ensure that every child attends a recognised school or otherwise receives a certain minimum education. The Board is developing, on a continuing basis, a nationwide service that is accessible to schools, parents/guardians and others concerned with the welfare of young people. For this purpose, Educational Welfare Officers (EWOs) have been deployed throughout the country to provide a welfare-focused service to support regular school attendance and discharge the Board's functions locally. The authorised staffing complement of the Board is 94 comprising 16 HQ and support staff, 5 regional managers, 12 Senior EWO's and 61 EWO's. Five regional teams are in place with bases in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford. In deploying its service staff, the NEWB has prioritised the provision of services to the most disadvantaged areas and the most at-risk groups. This deployment includes areas designated under the Government's RAPID programme where an intensive full level of service is provided. Since September 2005 every county in Ireland is served by an educational welfare service. I have been informed by the NEWB that the current average caseload is 138 per officer. The budget allocated to the NEWB for 2006 is €8.15m, with the allocation to the Board having increased by more than 25% since 2004 to support it in delivering on its key objectives. In addition to the NEWB personnel there are some 490 staff, within the education sector, deployed in education disadvantage programmes whose work involves an element of school attendance and significant scope exists for integrated working between these personnel and Educational Welfare Officers. My Department is anxious to ensure that the maximum benefit is derived from these substantial personnel resources. Consequently work is ongoing to develop appropriate protocols for all agencies and services to work together in collaboration and to ensure that optimum use is made of the resources deployed. This government is determined to do all that is possible to ensure that every child gets all the opportunities and support they need to enable them to achieve their potential and participate fully in education. I will be keeping the issue of the NEWB's staffing and financial resources under review in light of the rollout of services, the scope for integrated working and any proposals that the Board may put to me in relation to clearly identified priority needs. In that regard the draft partnership agreement "Towards 2016" includes provision for an additional 100 posts in total for the NEWB and the National Educational Psychological Service by 2009.
