Noel Grealish
Question:257. Deputy Noel Grealish asked the Minister for Education the current status of grants that are outstanding to a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50997/23]
View answerTuesday, 21 November 2023
Questions (257)
Written answers
My Department is committed to providing funding to recognised primary and post-primary schools in the free education scheme by way of per capita grants. The two main grants are the Capitation grant to cater for day to day running costs such as heating, lighting, cleaning, insurance, general up-keep etc. and the Ancillary grant to cater for the cost of employing ancillary services staff. Schools have the flexibility to use capitation funding provided for general running costs and ancillary funding provided for caretaking and secretarial services as a common grant from which the Board of Management can allocate according to its own priorities.
In addition to these grants, €20 million in funding was delivered during the mid-term break, to support all recognised primary and post-primary schools in the Free Education Scheme. This funding is the first tranche of an overall additional €60 million funding announced as part of Budget 2024 measures designed to assist schools with increased day-to-day running costs such as heating and electricity. A further €40 million in funding will be delivered in 2024.
Following the acceptance by Forsa of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) agreement in respect of salaries and various leave entitlements for grant-funded school secretaries, those secretaries who accepted the terms of this agreement have been placed on a payroll operated by this Department. Therefore, as schools will no longer be responsible for paying the salaries of these secretaries, it is necessary to revise the ancillary grant funding. The priority to date has been to ensure secretaries could be set up on a Department payroll on the correct point on the pay scale from September 2023. This represented a very significant body of work, given the numbers involved.
Schools have received 2/3rds of the Ancillary Grant payable in 2023, and the Department is working to ensure the arrangements for the payment of remaining ancillary grant funding to schools are finalised so that funds due to schools can be paid as soon as possible.
In relation to the annual school grants calendar recently published on gov.ie/schoolgrantscalendar2324 , this does not include any unscheduled payments/grants, such as the recent Cost of Living Grant, that occur from year to year.
The Minor Works Grant for primary schools for the current school year 2023/2024 was paid in April 2023. This funding provides schools with a good lead in period to plan and undertake works that will support the operation of schools going into the 2023/24 school year.
Schools have the autonomy to use this funding for maintenance and small-scale improvements to school buildings and grounds. Given that each school setting is different, individual schools are best placed to decide how best to use this funding to address their particular needs.
The works that can be undertaken under minor works scheme include maintenance and small-scale improvements to school buildings and grounds, improvement or replacement of mechanical and electrical services, the purchase of standard furniture and physical education equipment, the purchase of floor coverings and window blinds, the purchase of IT related equipment, ventilation improvements, and enhancements to outdoor learning environments.