10 May 2006

Education

Cap on Admissions for Post Leaving Cert Colleges

Ciarán Cuffe asked the Minister for Education and Science if she will offer an explanation for the disparity between the cap on admissions post leaving certificate colleges versus the automatic availability of capitation grants for private secondary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science (Miss de Valera):

Most colleges offering Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) Courses are under the management of the Vocational Education Committees. Funding is provided for pay and non-pay costs on the basis of an approved number of places on approved courses run by the colleges. Each year, PLC providers are required to forward their proposals for the provision of PLCs to the Department for approval. Applications for approval of PLC places are being received in the Department at present in respect of the 2006/07 academic year.

We have increased the number of PLC places by 60% since 1996/97. The number of places approved for 2005/2006 is up by more than 1,600 on the 2004/05 level. The number of approved places in the sector now stands at 30,188. Numbers will be increased further as resources permit.

We also extended the provision of maintenance grants to PLC students with effect from September 1998. The PLC maintenance grant scheme operates on the same basis as in higher education. There were nearly 8,000 PLC grant-holders in 2005 and they received some €23 million in direct support. Tuition fees for PLC courses are also waived. PLC students are included in the calculation of non-pay budgets issued to schools in respect of running costs. A supplementary non-pay grant towards running costs specifically for PLC schools is also payable. This amounted to €5.5 million in 2005. In addition, capital funding for works at eleven PLC colleges in 2006 has been agreed. The position with regard to private secondary schools is that my Department pays the salaries of teachers in these schools but capitation grants for running costs are not payable.