Vol. 531 No. 3
449 Mr. Gregory asked the Minister for Education and Science the funding available to a secondary school (details supplied) in Dublin 3 to employ a caretaker; and if his income is subject to Programme for Prosperity and Fairness increases. [5904/01]
My Department provides funding towards the cost of caretaking services, in the case of the school referred to by the Deputy, under a grant scheme introduced in 1992 under the terms of the PESP agreement.
The PESP grant is paid as an addition to the standard per capita grant. This scheme does not provide for the linking of the additional per capita grants to any particular pay scale. The scheme, by its nature, is flexible and gives schools discretion as to the manner in which caretaking services are to be provided. Caretakers employed by schools are employees of the individual schools and my Department does not have any role in determining the pay and conditions under which they are employed. The question of the application of the terms of the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness is not, therefore, a matter for my Department.
The establishment of the school services support fund is a significant contribution towards enabling schools to meet their commitments. Under the fund, schools now receive additional annual funding of £20 per pupil, with a minimum payment for smaller schools of £4,000 per school. This fund will channel an additional £4 million to voluntary secondary schools each year. Provision for caretaking support is a particular focus of this fund.
