30 primary schools to lose a teacher

More than 30 primary schools will lose a teacher next autumn due to ongoing changes to how smaller schools are staffed.

Department of Education figures show that 34 primary schools will lose a mainstream teacher next September, while another six will not gain a teaching post they might otherwise have been due. The cuts are the result of the final phase of changes to the staffing schedule for primary schools with four teachers or less.

However, the department said the staffing allocations are subject to appeal, which could mean far fewer schools losing out for the autumn term, when final figures emerge in a few months.

Under the appeals process operated in the first two years of the changed policy, 47 of the proposed 122 teacher cuts were not imposed, mainly as a result of schools being able to demonstrate their pupil numbers were rising enough to justify keeping the threatened teaching post. In addition, 11 out of 53 schools due to be hit by another impact of the staffing changes have successfully appealed, meaning they could appoint an extra teacher.

The provisional figures for next September seen by the Irish Examiner are far less than the 124 that Fianna Fáil claimed last month would be subject to cuts because of the policy, introduced by Mr Quinn in December 2011 to eventually save €15m a year.

The budget change has seen the number of pupils schools must have in order to retain a second, third or fourth teacher increase over the past three years, but the minister told the Dáil recently that the 79 schools to lose teachers so far still have class sizes below the national average.

However, the cuts will still be of concern to communities, mostly in rural areas, in danger of losing further staffing as they also argue that smaller classes are necessary to facilitate teaching mixed classes.

The issue is also the subject of political tensions.