I wish to advise the Deputy that the School Completion Programme and the School Excellence Fund are two entirely separate interventions and, while both form part of DEIS Plan 2017, they focus on different objectives.
The School Completion Programme (SCP) is a service for schools in the context of DEIS the core aim of which is to increase the numbers of young people staying in school and in doing so improve the numbers of pupils who successfully complete Senior Cycle, or equivalent. The SCP, including its funding, comes within the policy remit of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. Further information on the SCP is available on the website of the Programme's service provider, Tusla, at the following link: http://www.tusla.ie/services/educational-welfare-services/school-support-services-under-the-deis-initiative/school-completion-programme.
A key element of DEIS Plan 2017 is its focus on a pilot approach to identifying and supporting effective interventions, and exploring how these and further creativity around teaching and learning can make better use of the resources available to schools to achieve good educational outcomes.
To make this happen, DEIS Plan 2017 sets out the arrangements for the establishment of a School Excellence Fund to encourage schools to adopt more creative and innovative approaches to tackling educational disadvantage.
It is intended that the Fund will be trialled in a first group of schools during the coming school year, with priority being given to proposals from schools serving the most disadvantaged communities in inner city areas.
Areas of activity to be considered for piloting include:
- Encouraging strategic clustering and networking of schools in acutely disadvantaged areas;
- Leveraging evidence informed good practice in meeting the needs of students at risk of educational disadvantage;
- Enhancing school leadership and better equipping teachers to meet the needs of their pupils;
- Improving parental engagement and participation in student learning
- Supporting transitions across the education continuum.
Implementation of the SEF will be overseen by the Inspectorate and Social Inclusion Unit of my Department and evaluation will take place as part of the DEIS Monitoring and Evaluation Framework.
The establishment of the School Excellence Fund fulfills an important Programme for Government commitment aimed at promoting excellence and innovation in the school system.