The school to which the Deputy refers is included in the disadvantaged areas scheme, the Giving Children an Even Break programme and the support teacher scheme.
Under the disadvantaged areas scheme, the school benefits from the allocation of one concessionary teaching post, additional capitation grants of €38.09per capita, a refund of the television licence fee and eligibility for 95% building grants for building projects. Designated disadvantaged schools are included in the home-school community liaison scheme and this school has the service of a shared home-school community liaison co-ordinator.
Giving Children an Even Break subsumes the previous process of designation of schools that serve areas of educational disadvantage and my Department's approach is now refined to ensure that individual at-risk pupils are targeted. Rather than the old method of designating additional schools, under this scheme my Department provides support that is commensurate with the levels of concentration in schools of pupils with characteristics that are associated with educational disadvantage and early school-leaving.
The school referred to by the Deputy is included in the urban dimension of Giving Children an Even Break. The school is benefiting from supplementary funding to provide additional educational supports for the children concerned. The school is not considered eligible for additional teaching staff based on the level of concentration of at-risk pupils within the school.
The support teacher project supports 47 designated schools with 41 teachers. It aims to co-ordinate a whole school approach to designing and implementing good practice and strategies. These strategies will help to prevent the occurrence of disruptive behaviour and to teach and counsel small groups and individuals who exhibit persistent behavioural difficulties in the classroom. The school to which the Deputy refers has one full support teacher project post.
The new action plan for educational inclusion, DEIS — delivering equality of opportunity in schools — which I launched recently provides for a standardised system for identifying levels of disadvantage and a new integrated school support programme which will bring together and build upon a number of existing interventions for schools with a concentrated level of disadvantage. The new action plan will be introduced on a phased basis starting in the next school year and will involve an additional annual investment of €40 million on full implementation. It will also involve the provision of some 300 additional posts across the education system.
A key element of this new action plan is the better identification of levels of disadvantage in our schools which will result in improved targeting of resources at those most in need. The first stage of the identification process which is being conducted on behalf of my Department by the Educational Research Centre is under way. Questionnaires issued to all mainstream primary schools and were due to be returned to the ERC by 31 May 2005. The identification process is being supported by an advisory group which includes representation from the INTO and the Irish Primary Principals' Network.
Approximately 600 primary schools, comprising 300 urban-town and 300 rural and 150 post-primary schools, will be included in the school support programme. Existing schemes and programmes will be integrated into the school support programme on a phased basis over the implementation period.
As the Deputy is aware, a new general allocation scheme has been announced under which schools will be provided with resource teaching hours, based on their enrolment figures, to cater for children with high incidence special needs such as dyslexia and those with learning support needs. The introduction of this new system will involve the provision of an estimated additional 340 permanent posts in primary schools from September next. A further 320 posts are being provided on a temporary basis to facilitate the transition to the new system and to ensure continuity of service for children who have previously been given an individual allocation until those children leave the primary school system.
The general allocation for the school in question is one full-time permanent teaching post. In addition, the school may be entitled to retain part-time hours under transitional arrangements to cater for the needs of individual pupils with high incidence special needs until such time as these pupils leave the school. The school in question has made an application to retain part-time hours under transitional arrangements. My officials are examining this proposal and the school authorities will be notified of the outcome in due course.
I can also confirm that the school's resource teaching allocation under the new scheme is based on its status as a boys' school: the first post is allocated at 135:1. Schools whose allocations are based on 80:1 are those disadvantaged schools that are specifically eligible for additional staffing under the urban dimension of the Giving Children an Even Break scheme. As the school is not eligible for such additional staffing, it does not qualify for the special 80:1 ratio for resource teacher allocation.