asked the Minister for Education the reasons five teachers have been appointed to positions by the County Louth VEC without any of these positions being advertised as is required by the 1930 Vocational Education Act.
Written Answers. - Louth VEC.
71.
There is no provision in the Vocational Education Act, 1930, which requires vocational education committees to advertise a public competition for the filling of vacant teaching posts.
The relevant regulations relating to the granting of approval for teaching appointments made by vocational education committees specify, however, that vacant posts must, normally, be advertised by the committees concerned in newspapers with national circulation. The regulations also provide that exceptions to this requirement may be made in special circumstances.
The circumstances associated with the posts referred to by the Deputy warranted the waiver of that specific requirement and the confinement of the competition for the posts to teachers serving in another post primary school in the same area which is scheduled to be closed.
72.
asked the Minister for Education if she is aware of a discrepancy of 522 pupils between the figures given by her Department and those given by County Louth VEC for projected pupil enrolment in post primary schools in Dundalk for the years 1986-92; if she has made any efforts to establish the reasons for the discrepancy; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
I am aware that County Louth Vocational Education Committee's estimates of post primary pupil enrolments in the Dundalk area do not accord with those of my Department. The methodology used by my Department in their forecast of population growth was communicated at a recent meeting to the chairman and chief executive officer of County Louth Vocational Education Committee. Accordingly, the need for further information in the matter does not arise.
73.
asked the Minister for Education the reasons, out of the four extensions sanctioned for second level schools in Dundalk, County Louth, the VEC premises is the only school to get a prefab extension.
What is proposed for the vocational school in Dundalk is not the currently used prefabricated classroom but a good quality system-built accommodation which will have an expected life of 25 years. In the case of the other schools, permanent extensions were sanctioned generally to cater for the existing levels of enrolments, whereas the vocational school extension was sanctioned to cater for additional numbers. The system-built accommodation for the vocational school was approved because of the uncertainty as to the appropriate numbers to be catered for in the longer term. However, my Department propose to review the situation in the light of the enrolment figures and projections in September next. At that stage, I will consider the question of the type of accommodation to be provided.