Primary schools’ insurance costs exorbitant, say Labour

GOVERNMENT funding for primary schools should be trebled and insurance costs should be urgently reviewed, the Labour Party said yesterday.

In a policy document on investment in the country’s 3,300 primary schools, education spokesperson Jan O’Sullivan pointed to the huge chunk of school funds being spent on insurance.

A Labour Party survey of primary principals found that insurance accounts for an average 40% of entire annual school budgets. Ms O’Sullivan said insurance company figures show one-in-five school claims arise out of pupils falling in the yard, much of it attributable to the condition of playground surfaces.