Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is right, but the Deputy is there nonetheless.

I wish to acknowledge the major contribution being made daily by all school leaders in successfully operating Irish schools to an incredibly high standard. Budget 2017 allowed for the commencement of restoration of middle management posts as part of an agreed distributed leadership model and meant lifting the rigidity of the long-standing moratorium on these posts. The equivalent of approximately 1,300 middle management posts, namely assistant principal, AP, I and II posts, were restored in our primary and special schools. The Department committed to annually revising the allocation of posts of responsibility to take into account retirements during the school year, which has ensured that the current level of posts of responsibility is maintained in the school system. In 2022, the sectoral bargaining process under Building Momentum for the primary sector was used to increase posts of responsibility in primary and special schools by 1,450 posts. Budget 2024 has also provided for an additional 1,000 posts of responsibility, namely 500 AP II posts in both primary and second level, for the 2024-25 school year. A revised post of responsibility schedule has issued to schools to reflect this increase in AP II posts available to schools from September 2024. Today, one in three primary school teachers hold management positions in our primary and special schools.

The school leadership framework introduced in 2017 allows for flexibility in identifying and prioritising the evolving leadership and management needs of schools. This shared leadership model supports school leaders in the overall management and operation of schools. It provides for the assignment and reassignment of post-holders to specific roles and responsibilities to meet a school’s evolving needs. Other measures introduced at primary level in the intervening period in relation to school management and leadership structures include the following. In budget 2022, I ensured that all primary schools with a teaching principal have a minimum of 37 principal release days, that is, one administrative day per week. Schools with one special class have four additional release days, a total of 41 in the school year. The administrative principal pupil threshold has been reduced from an enrolment of 178 to 169, with the deputy administrative principal threshold reduced from an enrolment of 655 to 573. In budget 2024, the threshold for the appointment of an administrative deputy principal in special schools was removed which means that 100 teaching deputy principals in these schools will gain administrative deputy principalship from September of this year.

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