572. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Education and Youth the amount of funding provided in each year from 2019 to 2025, and projected for 2026, to the financial support services unit or any equivalent body for post-primary school financial governance, board financial oversight, finance sub-committee support, school-accounting compliance, audit/accountancy guidance, chart-of-accounts support and related training or guidance; and if she will provide the information by year, amount, purpose and source of funding, in tabular form. [39512/26]

The FSSU has been hosted by the JMB since 2005 when it was established as a support mechanism for voluntary secondary schools and in recent years expanded to schools in the primary and community and comprehensive sectors. In collaboration with the Department of Education, it was agreed that the FSSU would operate under the aegis of the JMB, the Joint Managerial Body which is the management body for secondary schools. This agreement has a background in a shared concern by both the Department and the JMB about the need to establish a standardised financial control and reporting framework for the safeguarding and accountability of State and other funding supports. The JMB is the employer of the FSSU staff and provide day to day supports including HR administration, accounting, payroll etc.

The Financial Support Services Unit (FSSU) provides a range of practical financial governance supports to schools to assist Boards of Management in meeting their statutory obligations under the Education Act 1998 and relevant department circulars. These supports are available to primary, voluntary secondary, community and comprehensive schools.

The FSSU develops and provides nationally standardised templates to support consistent and compliant financial management, including annual school accounts templates, monthly income and expenditure tracking templates, budget monitoring and cashflow management tools and financial policies and procedures templates

The FSSU delivers financial management training for Boards of Management, principals and school secretaries, bursars and treasurers. Training topics include budgeting and financial planning using the FSSU standardised templates, preparation of end of year accounts, training for newly appointed principals and Revenue and Charities Regulator responsibilities

All Boards of Management in primary, voluntary secondary, and community and comprehensive schools are required to prepare an annual budget. The FSSU supports schools in this process by providing practical guidance on budgeting and financial planning, standard budget templates and targeted training and ongoing advice

Through these supports, schools are assisted to forecast day to day operational costs, monitor cash flow throughout the school year, align expenditure with capitation grants and other income and make informed financial decisions

The FSSU also promotes strong financial governance by encouraging schools to plan, control expenditure, and avoid budgeting for a deficit without the required approval, while supporting compliance with financial reporting, accountability, and oversight requirements.

Please find a table below outlining the payments made by the Department of Education and Youth to the JMB for the operation of FSSU in the Financial years 2019 to 2025 inclusive. It should be noted that the payments made in 2026 is not readily available as expenditure in respect of 2026 has not been finalised to date.