I propose to take Questions Nos. 108 and 109 together.
The Deputy will be aware that as part of the budget announcements the teacher allocation processes will be reformed to provide greater autonomy to schools and to facilitate and simplify the work involved in creating shared posts, and in carrying out redeployment and recruitment. As part of this process 1,600 primary schools throughout the country will be identified by the Department as base schools for about 2,450 full-time resource only posts to cater for allocations determined by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
A school's approved NCSE allocation for the current school year will be used as a basis for the distribution of these full-time resource posts (which comprise 25 hours of teaching time) throughout the school system. The teachers in these full-time permanent posts will undertake NCSE approved resource hours in the base schools or in neighbouring schools. Through his/her role in allocating resources the local SENO will have an oversight role in relation to the sharing arrangements between schools so that they operate as efficiently as possible and time loss due to travel between schools can be kept to a minimum. Schools that are unable to have their NCSE approved resource hours met from this network of full-time resource posts will be allocated mainly part-time temporary posts. My Department will be notifying schools in January of the new staffing arrangements for 2012/13 school year.