Government announce funding to get on the road back to school

A €375 million support package has been announced by the government to facilitate the roadmap to enable a “safe return of schools”. Announced today by Minister for Education, Norma Foley, the funding for primary and post-primary schools covers a wide range of measures.

Headlines from Minister Foley's announcement include 1,000 additional teachers in post-primary schools to help reduce class sizes, as well as additional substitution, supervision, guidance counsellors and psychologists.

Dubbed 'Reopening Our Schools: The Roadmap for The Full Return to School' it was approval by Government this afternoon. The roadmap supports the full reopening of schools in time for the start of the new school year in late August.

It was developed following engagement with stakeholders from the education sector, including teachers’ unions, representatives of principals and deputy principals, school management bodies, representatives of parents and post-primary students and support staff.

The roadmap and the funding package recognise the challenges faced by schools in ensuring the safe return of over one million students and approximately 100,000 staff in 4,000 schools in the context of COVID-19.

Minister Foley announced plans for an additional 1,080 teaching posts at post-primary level at a cost of €53 million. This includes 120 guidance posts to support student wellbeing, an initial allocation of over 600 posts for post-primary schools, with the remaining posts to support post-primary schools experiencing difficulties reopen because of physical distancing and class sizes.

€84.7 million will be available for schools to employ replacement teaching staff, SNA and administrative staff. This can occur where staff members who are identified in line with HSE guidance as at ‘very high risk’ of COVID-19 are advised to cocoon.

Additional funding of €41.2 million is available to provide primary schools with substitute staff. This will cover substitutions not included in existing schemes, as well as where staff members who display symptoms cannot come to work in the school, in line with public health advice.

€40m is available to provide post-primary schools with additional supervision of students. This will be a key control measure to support schools to minimising interaction of students from different classes, in line with public health advice.

An additional €52 million will be provided for schools for enhanced cleaning and hygiene measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission in schools. This is being provided on a per-pupil basis and is intended to allow an additional four to six hours cleaning per day in schools.

A €75 million capital allocation will support schools to prepare their buildings and classrooms for reopening including an uplift for schools with SEN pupils, while, €4.2 million will enable schools employ an aide to implement the logistical changes needed in schools – moving furniture, changing classroom layouts, set up hand sanitising stations, signage etc.

€3.8m is provided for release time for each school to have a lead worker representative, whose role is to support the school to manage the risk of COVID-19 infections.

The plan and its accompanying documentation provides schools with guidance on training, checklists for schools on preparing for reopening and guidance for operating the school safely in a Covid-context. It advises on areas across logistics, curriculum, teaching, managing school activities, supporting pupils with additional needs, administration and wellbeing.

Minister Foley said: “This is a comprehensive plan that will support our schools to reopen for the new school year.

“We have worked extremely hard to develop plans that not only provide certainty to schools as to what they need to do, but that are meaningful, practical, and realistic. These have been informed by the expertise and collaboration of the stakeholders, and truly take account of how schools operate on a day-to-day basis. I want to thank everyone involved for the huge commitment in bringing this vast amount of work together,” she concluded.