Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 22 Oct 1991

Vol. 411 No. 4

Written Answers. - Disadvantaged Area Teacher Posts.

Brian O'Shea

Ceist:

228 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Education if she will list the vocational, community, comprehensive and secondary schools to which resource teachers have been allocated this year; if she will further outline the criteria on which the decisions were made; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Education (Mrs. O'Rourke)

I assume the Deputy is referring to the posts allocated to post-primary schools in disadvantaged areas in accordance with the terms of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress.

The allocation of posts was done on the basis of criteria agreed by representatives of management, unions, parents and my Department. Factors taken into account included the number of first year pupils within a school (i) whose parents are in receipt of either unemployment assistance or benefit, (ii) living in rented local authority housing or nonpermanent accommodation, (iii) from deprived rural backgrounds, (iv) whose parents hold medical cards, (v) living with lone parents, (vi) who would be unable to cope with everyday demands if they were to leave school now.

I am arranging to have the list of schools forwarded to the Deputy.