Finance forms 25% of principals’ work

PRIMARY school principals spend up to one-quarter of their school day trying to balance the books instead of teaching or leading pupils’ education needs, research has found.

The study of the costs of primary education and the funding sources is being carried out by an Australian expert for the Irish Primary Principals’ Network (IPPN).

The preliminary findings to be presented by Jim Spinks to 900 principals at the organisation’s annual conference, which opens in Killarney today, show that Irish schools use their resources efficiently and often have voluntary financial expertise available.