Teacher Conferences: More funds for schools that drive down costs

Schools that do more to drive down prices of uniforms and books for parents may get a bigger slice of any increases in Department of Education funding for their own running costs.

Education Minister Richard Bruton will announce plans today to link rises in the budgets given to schools to their compliance with new principles on keeping down costs of essentials for their children’s education.

Although it remains unclear exactly how his department proposes to monitor cost-reduction measures, Mr Bruton will tell the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) annual congress that schools which do more will benefit more.