Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 November 2023
123. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Education what engagement she or her Department has had with post-primary schools in Galway with a view to implementing a common application system along the lines of the Limerick Area Post-Primary Schools Common Application System; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52863/23]
View answerThe Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, is an important piece of legislation which has introduced a more parent-friendly, equitable and consistent approach to how school admissions policy operates for the almost 4,000 primary and post-primary schools.
Parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available the pupil should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a selection process will be necessary. This selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. However, this may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.
The act requires schools to clearly set out their selection criteria in their admission policies. Schools have discretion in relation to their admission criteria and how they are applied. The criteria to be applied by schools and the order of priority are a matter for the schools themselves.
The annual enrolment process for new Junior Infants at primary and new First Years at post-primary is a very large scale operation that is transacted at close to 4,000 schools across the country involving some 140,000 pupils. Given the scale of the annual enrolment process it works best by being managed at local individual schools rather than being micro-managed by my Department. The overall process works very well each year and ensures that all children have a school place notwithstanding some issues that can occur in areas that have enrolment pressures. In those areas, my Department works closely with school management bodies, relevant patrons and individual schools to work through these issues and provide any necessary additional capacity to ensure that all children have a school place albeit not necessarily in their school of choice.
The analysis of the applications for enrolment provides clarity on duplicates and the extent to which families applied to multiple schools which is quite a common feature. Good coordination between schools can help ensure that this is managed and worked through at the earliest possible stage of the annual enrolment process. The categorisation of applicants by each school in accordance with its enrolment policy also helps to provide clarity on the extent to which the enrolment pressure is driven by local demand or in some cases by applications from outside the immediate area served by the school.
In the context of known enrolment pressures in the area, post-primary schools in the Galway City School Planning Area have been requested to share data on applications for admissions for September 2024 with my Department.
To further inform our planning, school management bodies are assisting with a detailed analysis of post-primary school capacity in the area, taking account of school-specific factors such as current class groupings and subject offerings.
Once there is better clarity on the actual requirement for places, any necessary actions can be taken. While all pupils may not obtain a place in the school of their first choice, families can be assured that any required solutions will be delivered to ensure that all pupils obtain a school place.
I am aware of the Common Application System (CAS) which has worked very effectively in Limerick City, and a similar process has been successfully implemented in Ennis. There are a lot of benefits to this system, particularly in terms of identifying capacity pressures at an early point and avoiding duplication on waiting lists etc. The Department will review how the workings of the Common Application System in Limerick and Ennis may assist with this work in other areas for future years.
