DEIS (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools), the action plan for educational inclusion, provides for a standardised system for identifying levels of disadvantage and an integrated School Support Programme (SSP). Prior to the amalgamation of the schools, in the town in question, in September 2011, and as a result of the identification and review processes carried out in 2005/06, 2 of the 3 schools were selected to participate in the School Support Programme (SSP).
The policy of my Department is to continue to provide supports to the newly amalgamated school in respect of the number of eligible pupils from the former DEIS schools. While a key priority for me is to continue to prioritise and target resources at schools with the most concentrated levels of educational disadvantage, the current economic climate and the challenge to meet significant targets on reducing public expenditure and operating within a ceiling on overall teacher numbers, limits opportunities and means that there is no capacity to provide for an extension of full DEIS status to newly amalgamated post-primary schools.