Vol. 552 No. 1
756 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Education and Science if he will provide additional funding to schools in the disadvantaged areas scheme, to enable them to employ secretarial and caretaking staff, due to the extra needs and additional services required in schools in disadvantaged areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11567/02]
All schools, including those in disadvantaged areas, have benefited from the substantial improvements that I have made towards the provision of secretarial and caretaking support services. In line with a PPF commitment to mainstream certain essential services provided under community employment schemes, I recently secured the transfer of some €58.4 million per annum to my Department on a phased basis between 2001 and 2003, as the FÁS school based CE schemes come to an end. The availability of this funding has enabled me to make significant progress in relation to the provision of secretarial and caretaking services to schools by putting in place an equitable system of funding for ancillary services throughout the free education school system. My Department received a total of €40.6 million for the 2001-02 school year.
In the case of primary schools, I am increasing the grant for caretakers and secretaries from €50.79 per pupil per annum to €126.98 per pupil over this school year and the next. With effect from September 2001, the grant was increased from €50.79 to €76.18 per pupil. This has been further increased to €101.58 per pupil with effect from January 2002. As a result, the minimum grant to be paid to schools with 60 pupils or less has increased from €3,047.37 to €6,094.74 per annum, while schools with 500 pupils or more will increase from €25,394.76 to €50,789.52 per annum.
Significant improvements have been made in the level of funding to second level schools. The standard per capita grant from €224.74 that applied in 1997, was increased to €256.49 in this school year, and will be further significantly increased by €10 for the next school year to €266.49. An additional per capita grant of €38.09 is paid to disadvantaged schools bringing the total per capita grant in the case of such schools to over €300. In addition, under the school services support initiative, second level schools will benefit from further significant increases in the support grant from €25.40 per pupil to €99.04 per pupil over this school year and the next.
