Dan Neville
Ceist:146 Mr. Neville asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of schools in County Limerick which have the services of a caretaker and secretarial grants; and the number which do not. [20121/99]
Written Answers. - School Secretarial and Caretaking Services.
My Department provides funding towards the cost of secretarial and caretaking services in primary schools under two separate schemes. One scheme is the 1978-79 scheme for the employment of school secretaries and caretakers under which my Department meets the full cost of salary and employer's PRSI. Under this scheme, schools either qualified for a full-time post or were included in a sharing arrangement. This scheme is, however, being phased out as posts become vacant.
Arising from the Programme for Economic and Social Progress, PESP, a second scheme was introduced in 1992 whereby my Department provides additional capitation grants for primary schools towards the cost of secretarial and caretaking services. Under the PESP scheme, schools with 195 pupils or more and who do not have a service already under the schemes outlined above, receive grants of £30 per pupil, based on their enrolments, which are paid as additions to the standard per capita grant.
I have set out as follows the statistics in relation to the 149 schools in Limerick.
|
Caretaker |
Secretary |
||||||
|
1979 Scheme |
PESPScheme |
1978 Scheme |
PESPScheme |
||||
|
Full |
Shared |
Full |
Shared |
||||
|
9 |
6 |
29 |
6 |
14 |
26 |
|
No Service |
|
|
Caretaker |
Secretary |
|
105 |
103 |
I am pleased to inform the Deputy that with effect from January next, all primary schools with 100 or more pupils will be eligible for a grant of £30 per pupil towards secretarial and caretaking services under the PESP scheme.
My officials will be writing to all qualifying schools over the next couple of months confirming their inclusion, and setting out the details of the scheme. I expect that approximately 35 of the schools in Limerick which currently have no service from my Department, will be included from January next.
The position in relation to second-level is as follows: the allocation of caretaking and secretarial posts in the vocational education sector is made on a scheme wide basis and it is a matter for each committee to deploy the staff as it sees fit. Most schools in this sector have the services of a full-time caretaker and a secretary; community and comprehensive schools have a full-time secretary and caretaker and schools with an enrolment in excess of 500 pupils have two full-time secretaries; secondary schools with enrolments of 200 or more pupils and not covered by the 1978 scheme for school secretaries are in receipt of additional per capita grants towards the provision of caretaking and secretarial services, subject to maximum of £8,750 for caretaking and £10,500 in the case of secretarial services. There is one school with less than 200 pupils that does not qualify for additional support.