Written Answers - National Educational Welfare Board.
Jan O'Sullivan
Ceist:
47
Ms O'Sullivan
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
the progress made to date in regard to the operation of the National Educational Welfare Board; the number of staff employed and the services being offered by the board; the steps he is taking to resolve the impasse between the board and the school attendance officers; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[5816/03]
Seymour Crawford
Ceist:
53
Mr. Crawford
asked the
Minister for Education and Science
when he intends to proceed to appoint education and welfare officers; and the areas of the country which have education and welfare officers at present.
[5897/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 47 and 53 together.
The Education (Welfare) Act 2000, which is now fully commenced, established the National Educational Welfare Board as the single national agency with responsibility for school attendance. The board has responsibility for ensuring that each child attends a recognised school or otherwise receives a certain minimum education. The board is required to assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in ensuring that their children attend school regularly, and will also assist schools in fulfilling their role under the Act.
Through the appointment of educational welfare officers, the board will provide a welfare-focused service which is accessible to parents, school and others concerned with the welfare of young people. Where a child is not attending school, or is not otherwise in receipt of a certain minimum education, the board will investigate the case, establish the reasons for non-attendance, and then work collaboratively with the family, schools and others concerned with the child's welfare in order to ensure that the child either attends school or otherwise receives an appropriate education.
The board also has the legal power to compel a parent to send his or her child to school. However, this power will only be used where all other measures have failed and where the board is of the view that the parent has not made all reasonable efforts in this regard.
Some 36 former school attendance officers have already transferred to the board and these are providing a service in city areas of Dublin, Cork and Waterford. Discussions between the management and union sides in relation to the terms and conditions of the officers as educational welfare officers in the new service have been under way for some time. The revised formal offer made by the board to the staff concerned in December has now been accepted by the staff, subject to a range of issues being referred to the Labour Court for adjudication. The board will now move to appoint the former school attendance officers as educational welfare officers in accordance with the offer. In the meantime, staff are working normally in accordance with guidance issued to them by the board. The recruitment of additional educational welfare officers will be facilitated by the budget of €5.244 million which I have allocated to the new service in 2003.
In developing and expanding this new service, which is being introduced on a phased basis, priority will be given to areas that already had a service under the previous legislation as well as areas of high levels of disadvantage, especially areas covered by the RAPID programme. However, decisions relating to the appointment of educational welfare officers in specific areas are a matter for the National Educational Welfare Board, which is an independent statutory body.
Question No. 48 answered with Question No. 20.
