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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 10 Nov 1998

Vol. 496 No. 3

Adjournment Debate. - Primary Schools Funding.

The booming economy in Ireland affords us a unique opportunity to provide adequate funding for primary education. The capitation grant of £50, payable to primary schools, is derisory. It is £127 less than the capitation grant for post-primary schools, which is considered inadequate. Primary education has been the poor relation since the foundation of the State. This is exemplified in Bryan McMahon's book, The Master, in which he describes the teaching conditions which he experienced in the early years of the State. Many years of underfunding has led to the highest pupil-teacher ratio in Europe, a chronically under-funded remedial teaching system and third world facilities in some schools.

The INTO survey carried out in 1997 revealed some startling statistics. There are still about 35 schools without outside toilets; 130 schools did not have a telephone; 17 per cent had classes in prefabs, many of which were dilapidated; over 30 per cent could not afford a daily cleaning service; almost half did not have a general purpose room for physical education, concerts, parent meetings and so on; 59 per cent did not have a principal's office and 76 per cent did not have hot water for the children's wash hand basins.

The latest OECD figures show Ireland spends less per primary student than any other country in western Europe, North America or Australia. Our primary pupil-teacher ratio is the worst among 12 comparable European countries. It seems incredible that all this is happening at a time of such unprecedented economic growth. Because of the inadequate capitation grant of £50, parents have to fund raise to ensure, in many cases, the basic needs of heating, light and cleaning are provided. It is not uncommon for teachers to pay for essential materials to ensure their class can take part in art, music or other activities.

The 1997 INTO survey showed parents and school communities are subsidising education to the tune of over £10 million each year. The Department of Education and Science contributes approximately £22 million towards the running costs of primary schools. The survey also showed that almost half of all schools cannot pay for the basics out of the £50 per pupil provided by the Department. Over 80 per cent of schools fund-raise and 62 per cent of these use the money to supplement their running costs; 77 per cent need to fund-raise to provide teaching materials for the school and 45 per cent use the money raised locally to provide sports equipment.

In many instances teachers have become semi-professional fund-raisers. Parents and teachers in less well off areas and small rural communities are finding it increasingly difficult to fund-raise given the decline in the rural economy and urban unemployment. This results in unfair treatment of children in those schools. They are placed at a disadvantage from the beginning and find it difficult to catch up when they enter the post primary system. Apart from the normal costs, primary schools have to pay refuse charges, TV licences, cable link fees, computer maintenance and software, photocopying costs and so on.

I recently visited what would be regarded as one of the top primary schools in Kerry for a meeting with the board of management and the principal teacher. They pointed out it was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain services in the school, that they are weary of fund-raising and that the parents are becoming increasingly disillusioned with fund-raising activities. They need financial help which can only be provided by at least a 100 per cent increase in the capitation grant in 1999 and a gradual increase in the grant until it is on a par with the post-primary capitation grant.

I appeal to the Minister of State to remind his Minister of the commitment he made in Opposition that primary education would be a priority. He now has the opportunity to make improvements and he must do so in a substantial fashion.

We have put primary education at the centre of the Government's agenda and this is explicitly included in the programme for Government. This has been delivered upon and, while the Deputy would obviously not wish me to pre-empt the announcement of the Abridged Estimates tomorrow, I have no doubt we will continue our unmatched commitment to primary education in Ireland.

Since coming to office last year we have made a number of changes which have improved funding in schools. The 1998 Estimates provided for an overall increase of almost 12 per cent in expenditure in primary education over the 1997 budget allocation. In this context, we succeeded in securing an increase in the standard rate of capitation grant, payable at primary level, for 1998 of 11 per cent after it had been frozen by the previous Government. This brought the total standard per capita grant rate to £50 per pupil or a minimum grant of £3,000 to schools with an enrolment of fewer than 60 pupils. Schools which have disadvantaged area status receive supplementary capitation payments at a rate of £30 per pupil.

These figures represent an important step forward in the process of improving the funding of the primary sector. It is important to note that the difference in grant level between primary and post primary levels reflects the fact that maintenance costs for second level schools are much greater, on a unit cost basis, than those in primary schools — any reasonably minded citizen will accept that. The second level capitation payment is required to cover a different range of additional expenditures. These include a requirement to pay a portion of every teacher's salary. We will continue to give priority to the issue of further increases in the capitation grant to primary schools.

On the provision of caretaking and clerical assistance, the Programme for Economic and Social Progress provided for the introduction of a phased scheme of additional capitation grants with a view to expanding the provision of caretaking and clerical services to all primary schools with 100 pupils or more. The priority has been to extend the scheme to include schools which have no provision for these services rather than increase the per capita grant rate of £30 per pupil — £15 per pupil in respect of each service. In this regard the scheme has been extended to include more schools by reducing the qualifying enrolment figure to 195 pupils.

We are committed to further improvements in this programme until such time as all national schools of 100 or over will ultimately be grant assisted towards the cost of clerical and caretaking services. The Government has approved the first ever automatic right to educational support for many children with special needs and especially children with autism. Costing roughly £4 million next year, the employment of resource teachers and child care assistants represents a radical improvement in primary education, which should have been addressed many years ago. I have no doubt this Government will be remembered for having shown a commitment to providing resources to primary schools, unmatched by any other Government in the history of the State.

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