THERE HAS BEEN a 540% increase in the number of schools who were referred to the state’s Financial Support Services Unit which offers guidance to school management in times of crisis in the last two years.

New figures reveal that almost half of the 34 facilities in Ireland receiving assistance in their finances are special schools or are included on the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (Deis) programme.

The figures were released to Sinn Féin TD and education spokesperson Darren O’Rourke, who said the massive increase in schools needing funding help represents the need for increases in the base-level grants that schools receive.

Schools are commonly referred to the Financial Support Services Unit (FSSU) by the Department of Education in times of financial crisis following engagement between the school and government.

The FSSU provides additional oversight and guidance to boards of management for school finances and offers support for financial governance, training and compliance.

Increases are a ‘proxy’ of underfunding

Just five primary schools were referred to the unit for the 2022/23 school year. The figure has since increased to 32 primary schools and two secondary schools receiving support this year – an increase of 540% in the last two years.

Of the 34 schools receiving assistance, 12 of them are recipients of the Deis programme while four of them are special schools. 

Speaking to The Journal, O’Rourke said the “root of the issue” is that the funding awarded to these schools is not enough to match the increased cost that boards of management are facing.

He described the massive increases as a “proxy” for the need to better allocate funding into two per-capita grant schemes, the capitation grant (for day-to-day costs) and the ancillary grant (for support staff).

Sinn Féin's education spokesperson Darren O'Rourke said funding awarded to schools does not match the increased costs schools are facing. © RollingNews.ie © RollingNews.ie

Primary schools with fewer than 60 students are automatically awarded both grants while secondary schools with under 200 students receive staff assistance payments.

O’Rourke, referring to increases in costs such as energy bills and insurance premiums in recent years, said: “The base level of that funding for our schools isn’t matching the increased costs that our schools are facing.”

“I think it’s a case that some schools can weather the storm better [than others],” he added, explaining that Deis schools may not have as much access to donations from an ‘affluent’ community, by nature of their disadvantage, compared to other schools.

Education minister Helen McEntee told O’Rourke last week that her department remains “committed” to providing funding to primary and secondary schools through both grants, as well as increasing capital funding in each budget.

Over €30 million is available for schools in need of assistance for day-to-day costs, she said.

Schools may have to close

In the Dáil this week, People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy again highlighted the case of Sacred Heart Junior School, in Killinarden, near Tallaght, in Dublin. He said the school would have to “close its doors because it could not pay the bills”.

It is one of the schools that has been referred to the FSSU, the Dáil heard. Murphy said that engagement between the unit and the school began in December last year and has been ongoing, with the unit requesting more financial information from management.

O’Rourke said there is a need to increase funding in the grants for schools, like Sacred Heart Junior School, and implement a better-targeted Deis programme, as the figures insinuate that the additional funds to schools are not meeting the desired outcome. 

“You can welcome measures like the free books scheme and hot school meals, but then you have the advantage that these schools are supposed to have – based on their disadvantage – whittling away,” he said.

He added: “What we have here is the failure of the State to reach its goals, in terms of educational equality.”

McEntee said: “The Department of Education is aware that costs and funding can pose a very real problem for schools, and is constantly working to address this matter, and to enhance the financial and other supports available to schools.

Though not wishing to pre-empt Budget decisions, McEntee added that the Department of Education will continue to seek the necessary funding required to meet the ongoing running costs of schools.