Teaching vacancies in Laois primary schools revealed

Laois will have 12 long-term teaching substitute vacancies in local primary schools in the next three months, according to latest figures released following a national survey of schools. 

The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO), in conjunction with the Irish Primary Principals’ Network (IPPN) and the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA) published the results of an extensive survey highlighting an unprecedented level of vacant teaching posts in primary and special schools.

In Laois, there are currently two vacant long-term fixed-term posts and five unfilled long-term substitute vacancies. 

The survey found that in total, there is a current shortfall of 809 permanent, fixed-term and long-term substitute teachers in the schools who responded to the survey across the country.

These schools have also indicated that they anticipate having an additional 1,202 long-term vacancies within the next three months.  

This survey also identifies the disproportionate adverse impact on certain schools. 28% of all schools in the survey reported long term vacancies but that percentage rose to 50% in DEIS Band one schools and Gaelscoileanna and 43% of special schools.  

The survey showed a particular geographical impact on Dublin and other urban areas. Dublin was the county with the most vacant posts – 513 out of 809 (63%) of all vacant posts were in the greater Dublin area (109 permanent, 213 fixed-term and 191 long-term substitute). Within Dublin, the areas worst affected are Dublin 24 (58 vacancies, including 21 permanent), Dublin 15 (35, including 9 permanent) and Dublin 12 (33 including 10 permanent). There were 70 vacancies in Kildare, 63 in Meath, 30 in Louth and 32 in Wicklow. 

Two thirds of primary schools responded that they had used a Special Education Teacher (SET) to cover for an absence and 61 schools responded that they had used a SET for more than 20 days by the end of the first month of the school year. This indicates the impact that the teacher shortage is having on special education provision.  

The survey of all primary and special schools was conducted in the first week of October with a total of 1,094 schools responding (a 35% response rate). The demographics of the schools that responded were broadly reflective of the primary education sector.  

The teaching bodies say the findings "prove beyond any doubt that planning for teacher supply in the primary and special education sectors is failing and it is pupils with the greatest needs who are most adversely impacted".  

Last Christmas the Department of Education stated that in the primary sector 99.5% of contracts extending to a year or more had been filled, but they admitted that an average of 1,200 short-term daily substitute vacancies existed during the first academic term.

School principals have indicated clearly that the lack of short-term substitutes is already much more severe this year and that they have never before witnessed such massive numbers of longer-term vacancies.