24/10/1930: The School Meals (Gaeltacht) Act, 1930.

DEPARTMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC HEALTH.

THE SCHOOL MEALS (GAELTACHT) ACT, 1930.

The Minister for Local Government and Public Health, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, in exercise of the powers vested in him by sub-section (1) of section 11 of the School Meals (Gaeltacht) Act, 1930 , and in exercise of all other powers enabling him in this behalf, hereby makes the following regulations, that is to say :—

1. In these regulations the expression " the Act " means the School Meals (Gaeltacht) Act, 1930 ; the expression " the Minister " means the Minister for Local Government and Public Health ; the expression " prescribed " means prescribed by the Minister ; every expression to which a special meaning is assigned in the Act shall have the same meaning as in the Act ; the expression " provision of meals " means the provision under section 4 of the Act of meals for children attending national schools in the scheduled area of a board of health and includes the provision of food, accommodation, apparatus, equipment, service, and all other things necessary for or incidental to the provision of such meals ; and the expression " provision of food " means the provision of food for such meals.

2. A board of health shall not in any local financial year expend any moneys in the provision of meals at a national school save in accordance with arrangements in writing, which the board shall have first approved, for the provision of meals thereat. The board shall immediately after such approval notify the Minister of the name and address of the school and of the nature of the food to be provided thereat, and shall similarly notify any alteration from time to time in the nature of the food so provided. The board shall secure that so far as is practicable having regard to the circumstances of the school, the arrangements for the preparation and service of the meals shall be satisfactory.

3. Whenever a board of health propose to exclude one or more of the national schools in their scheduled area from the provision of meals they shall notify the Minister and with such notification they shall forward a statement of any special circumstances, which, in their opinion, justify such exclusion.

4. Any person authorised by the Minister may inspect at any reasonable time the provision of meals and may inquire into the adequacy of the arrangements for the provision of food and the efficiency of their working and each board of health shall make arrangements accordingly.

5. A board of health shall supply to the Minister such information as he may require from time to time in connection with the provision of meals.

6. A board of health shall so far as possible contract in writing for the supply of all goods required by them in connection with the provision of meals.

7. All orders for the supply of any goods or for the doing of any work required by a board of health in connection with the provision of meals shall be given only by a person authorised by the board on their behalf, and shall be in the form (Form No. 10) prescribed by the Public Bodies Order, 1925.

8. A board of health shall not authorise any person to defray on their behalf, or make any advance of money to any person for the purpose of defraying, any expenses incurred by the board in connection with the provision of meals.

9. A board of health shall arrange, as far as possible to defray in each month the expenses incurred by them in the provision of meals during the preceding month.

10. A board of health shall in keeping the accounts of their receipts and expenditure show separately their receipts and expenditure in connection with the provision of meals and also the portion of such latter expenditure attributable to the provision of food and shall show the particulars thereof separately in Table A(1) of the abstract of accounts of the board.

11. The grant payable to a board of health will, subject to the provisions of paragraph (c) below, be based on the expenditure out of the rates during the local financial year in respect of the provision of food and shall not exceed one-half thereof. The grant will be payable in the following manner :—

(a) An instalment not exceeding fifty per cent of the estimated expenditure for the half-year ending on the 30th day of September will be paid during that half-year.

(b) An instalment not exceeding thirty per cent. of the estimated expenditure for the half-year ending on the 31st day of March will be paid during that half-year.

(c) Where either of the instalments calculated in accordance with paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of this Article exceeds in amount the corresponding percentage of the proportionate sum available in respect of the scheduled area of the board for the local financial year as calculated in accordance with the provisions of sub-sections (1) (b) and (3) of section 9 of the act, the amount of that instalment shall be reduced to the amount represented by the corresponding percentage of the proportionate sum referred to herein.

(d) Where on ascertainment of the actual expenditure for the half-year ended on the 30th day of September, any adjustment is necessary in respect of the instalment calculated in accordance with paragraph (a) of this Article, the amount of such adjustment shall, as the case may require, be added to or deducted from the instalment calculated in accordance with paragraph (b) before payment thereof.

(e) A final instalment shall be paid, consisting of such sum (if any) as shall be certified by the auditor as remaining due in respect of the grant at the close of the local financial year after examination of the accounts of the expenditure incurred in that year.

12. For the purposes of the foregoing Article the board of health shall forward to the Minister in the prescribed form :—

(i) in the month of October of each year a preliminary estimate of their expenditure in respect of the provision of food for the ensuing local financial year accompanied by explanatory particulars of any substantial increase or decrease in such estimate as compared with the estimate for the preceding local financial year ; and

(ii) in the month of April of each year an estimate of their expenditure in respect of the provision of food for the half-year ending on the 30th day of September following ; and

(iii) in the month of October each year a statement of their actual expenditure in respect of the provision of food during the half-year ended on the 30th day of September, and an estimate of their corresponding expenditure for the half-year ending on the 31st day of March, following.

13. Nothing in these regulations shall be interpreted so as to compel the Minister to make any grant or pay any instalment of a grant to a board of health unless the Minister is satisfied that the arrangements made by the board of health for the provision of meals are adequate, and that such arrangements are being and have been efficiently carried out.

14. These regulations may be cited as The School Meals (Gaeltacht) Regulations, 1930.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Local Government and Public Health this Twenty-fourth day of October, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Thirty.

(Signed) RISTEARD UA MAOLCHATHA,

Minister for Local Government and Public Health.

The Minister for Finance does hereby consent to the foregoing regulations.

(Signed) EARNAN DE BLAGHD,

Minister for Finance.