Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 9 Dec 2003

Vol. 576 No. 5

Written Answers. - Early School Leavers.

Seán Crowe

Ceist:

247 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of children who did not transfer from primary to post primary education each year; the figures for each of the past five years; and if these figures are unavailable, the reason therefor. [29762/03]

Seán Crowe

Ceist:

248 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for Education and Science the initiatives he has taken to increase the transfer rate from primary to post primary education; and if there have been reductions in funding for any programme so set up. [29763/03]

Minister for Education and Science (Mr. N. Dempsey):

I propose to take Questions Nos. 247 and 248 together.

The specific information which the Deputy requires on the transfer rate over the past five years is not available. However, the latest information, published in the NESF report 2002 on early school leaving estimated that approximately 1,000 children do not transfer from primary to post-primary on an annual basis.

My Department is currently completing analysis work on the development of a primary pupils database. A project team, overseen by a steering group, has been assigned to work on the development of this key resource, which will facilitate the collation of comprehensive data on transfer rates in the future. A number of programmes operate at both primary and post-primary level that are designed to tackle the problem of early school leaving.

The Giving Children an Even Break programme provides additional financial and teaching supports for children in primary schools from disadvantaged backgrounds who are most at risk of educational disadvantage and early school leaving. Expenditure on this programme in 2003 will be in excess of €17 million.

A key role in this regard is also played by the home-school-community liaison scheme, which has been extended to each of the 311 designated disadvantaged primary schools in the country. This scheme helps parents to develop their skills as the primary educators of their children and also operates transfer programmes to help primary school pupils to make the transition to post primary level. Expenditure on this scheme will be in the region of €7 million in 2003.

The school completion programme has been implemented to directly target those in danger of dropping out of the education system and is a key component of my Department's strategy to discriminate positively in favour of children and young people who are at risk of early school leaving. The programme is based on an integrated cross-community approach to tackling educational disadvantage, involving 82 projects – 296 primary and 109 post primary schools – parents, communities and relevant statutory and voluntary agencies. It entails targeting individual young people of school-going age, both in and out of school, and arranging supports to address inequalities in education access, participation and outcomes. Total funding of €23 million was provided for the programme in 2003.

The Education Welfare Act 2000 and the establishment of the National Educational Welfare Board provides a comprehensive framework for promoting regular school attendance and tackling the problems of absenteeism and early school leaving. The Act requires schools to draw up school attendance strategies in order to promote regular attendance and tackle the problems of absenteeism and early school leaving. The strategies will focus on arrangements for the identification of children who are at risk of dropping out of school at an early stage so that appropriate interventions may be put in place. To discharge its responsibilities, the board is developing a nationwide service to provide welfare-focused services to children, families and schools. A budget of €5.4 million has been allocated to the board for the current year.

There are five youth encounter projects, YEPs, three in Dublin and one each in Cork and Limerick, which are supported by my Department to provide educational facilities for young people aged between ten and 15 years who have become alienated from the conventional mainstream education system. Many of the pupils are persistent truants and have become involved in, or are at risk of becoming involved in minor crime and delinquency. The primary objective of the youth encounter projects is to rehabilitate these pupils and return them to mainstream education in the shortest time possible. The projects liaise closely with specified schools in their catchment areas. A total of €915,000 was allocated to youth encounter projects for 2003. Such concentrated and focused deployment of funds should effectively assist in redressing the problem of early school leaving.

Questions Nos. 249 and 250 answered with Question No. 244.