The staffing of primary schools is determined by reference to the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous school year. This is in accordance with guidelines agreed between my Department and the education partners.
The enrolment at the school in question on 30 September 2000 was 156 pupils. An enrolment of 156 pupils warrants the staffing of a principal and five mainstream class teachers for the 2001-02 school year. In addition, the school has the services of a remedial teacher and a resource teacher for Travellers.
Last year I launched a major new programme, Giving Children An Even Break, to deal with educational disadvantage in primary schools. The new programme will be run over a three year period and will cost €33 million. The programme involves the creation of over 200 new primary teaching posts and the allocation of cash grants to primary schools in respect of disadvantaged pupils. The schools targeted under the programme were identified through a comprehensive and objective survey of all primary schools carried out in March-April 2000 by the Educational Research Centre, Drumcondra, on my Department's behalf. There are separate urban and rural dimensions to the new programme.