Carol Nolan
Ceist:443. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if class sizes will be reduced by one in budget 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32140/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 23 July 2019
Ceisteanna (443)
Freagraí scríofa
Budget 2019 marks the third year of a major reinvestment in the education. In 2019, the budget for the Department of Education and Skills will increase by €674 million, a 6.7% increase on last year. In total, the Education budget will have increased by €1.7 billion compared to 2016.
Budget 2019 will see numbers employed in our schools reach the highest ever level. Over 1,300 additional posts in schools will be funded, including more than 370 teaching posts to cater for growth in student population and additional special classes.
For the current school year, the staffing schedule at Primary level operates on a general average of 26 pupils to every 1 teacher (26:1) which is historically the lowest ever allocation ratio at primary level.
Any further improvement in the pupil teacher ratio will have to be considered in the context of the annual budgetary process.