Executive Agrees On Single Education body

Northern Ireland's five Education and Library Boards are to be merged to become a single education body, following Executive agreement.

Speaking after the Executive meeting on the issue, Education Minister John O’Dowd said: "Had it been possible to secure agreement on the Education Bill, then the Education and Skills Authority (ESA) would have been in place for April 2015. However, despite my best efforts, that agreement was not forthcoming. In these circumstances the Executive has agreed to withdraw its current commitment to establish ESA.

"I now have the Executive’s agreement for my Department to begin work on legislation to replace the existing five Education and Library Boards (ELBs) with a single body. The new body will assume the responsibilities of the ELBs as they currently exist, including employer responsibilities. The proposed Bill will also include a provision for my Department to fund a new body to provide support for controlled schools."

Mr O’Dowd stated: "There is no 'do-nothing' option. This is the best way of providing an education administration that is compatible with the changes to district councils that take full effect on 1 April 2015. It will provide stability in our education system and ensure consistency in services. Further delay will damage the ability of Boards to deliver a modern education service. A single board will also have much of the strength of the business case made for ESA, which promised £185million savings over 10 years."

(IT/CD)