Modest increase in leadership and management days for principals but more needed

This week, the Department of Education and Skills issued Circular 0020/2019 Release Time for Principal Teachers in Primary Schools. The circular sets out the number of leadership and management days (release days) that teaching principals can take in a school year.

The INTO recognises that the increase of one day per year for most teaching principals marks progress in the right direction but it does not meet the INTO’s demand for one leadership and management day per week. The additional four leadership and management days (five in total) for principals of schools with special classes, is a welcome improvement, given the additional workload for principals managing such classes.

Schools should bear in mind that they can combine their leadership and management days into clusters to form a full-time fixed-term post to cover each school’s day.

Size of school* Number of leadership and management days
Principal + 5/6, 30 days
Principal + 3/4, 24 days
Principal + 0/1/2, 18 days
Schools with special classes (regardless of size of school or number of special classes) Additional 4 days

*Size of schools in this instance refers to teaching principals and mainstream class posts. See Circular 0020/2019 for full details. (pdf)