Vol. 544 No. 2
17 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Science if his attention has been drawn to the changes in covenants introduced in the last Finance Act whereby a new threshold of £200 has been introduced; the consideration he has given to the implications of this change for the funding of second level schools; the assistance he will provide to schools to compensate for this loss of funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28256/01]
While the amount of the minimum contribution that may be donated to a school to qualify for tax relief is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Finance, I am not aware of concerns at school level as referred to by the Deputy. As the Deputy will be aware, the Government has in recent years placed a high priority on increasing funding to schools. At second-level, the per capita grant was increased to £184 from £177 in 1999. I further increased the grant by £8 from September last year to £192 and by £10 from September this year, bringing the standard per capita grant to more than £200 for the first time. For a school with 500 pupils, this amounts to an extra £12,500 per annum, and a total capitation grant of £101,000 towards general expenses. An additional per capita grant of £30 per pupil is paid to disadvantaged schools bringing the total annual grant in the case of such a school with 500 pupils to £116,000.
In addition, I have introduced the school services support fund, which is a significant initiative in the funding of our schools. While provision for support services, including secretarial and caretaking, is a particular focus of this fund, schools are being given discretion, in line with that available in relation to per capita grants, as to how this additional funding is best utilised in the interests of their pupils. Under the fund, a school with 500 pupils now receives additional annual funding of £20 per pupil or £10,000, with a minimum payment for smaller schools of £4,000 per school. I have recently announced further significant increases in the support grant to schools. With immediate effect, the annual grant will be increased from £20 per pupil to £50 per pupil, with a further increase to £70 per pupil next September and to £78 per pupil in January 2003. The minimum annual grant for smaller schools will also be increased from £4,000 to £15,600, while schools with 500 pupils or more will rise from £10,000 to £39,000 over this school year and the next.
My approach to date has clearly shown my commitment and determination to address the needs of schools. I am committed to improving further the funding position of second level schools in the light of available resources.
