Results 401-420 of 17,382 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Data (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the state examinations, including publication of examination statistics. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Data (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the state examinations, including publication of examination statistics. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school building project referred to by the Deputy is part of a campus project assigned to my Department’s Design and Build programme. This campus project will deliver a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school and accommodation, including classrooms, for children with special educational needs and a 16 classroom primary school and accommodation, including classrooms, for children...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm that my Department is not in receipt of an application for additional school accommodation (ASA) from the school in question.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project for the school referred to by the Deputy is the provision of a new 600 pupil school building including all associated ancillary accommodation. My Department previously advised a new grant of planning was received in December 2023, with a number of conditions attached. Decarbonisation measures were included in a revised project scope in line with Climate...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The position is that work is currently underway on developing and publishing an allocation model for school secretaries. This is a complex task and requires factoring in a number of elements - such as school status, class type, enrolment numbers, and existing secretary arrangements - to ensure that the final model is fair to all schools whilst also meeting their practical needs. Up to the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The provision of a payroll service for school secretaries by my Department is part of a package agreed with Fórsa, the trade union representing school secretaries, following a series of engagements at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and which also includes revised terms and conditions for secretaries. Traditionally, school secretaries were paid directly by the schools and my...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Department has committed considerable resources towards the restoration of guidance counselling hours to post-primary schools, to the provision of CPD for guidance counsellors and to the provision of a national guidance counselling supervision service for post-primary guidance counsellors in recent times. The guidance allocation is provided separately and transparently on each school's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I should explain that applications relating to the provision of funding for issues relating to an existing school building can fall under a number of different delivery mechanisms including, most frequently, the Summer Works Scheme and the Emergency Works Scheme. The purpose of the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS) is to provide funding specifically for unforeseen emergencies. It does so by...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Discipline (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The project to which the Deputy refers has been devolved for delivery to the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) as part of a programme of school building projects. (Project Boyne). The project has received full grant of planning permission and is currently at Stage 3 of the architectural planning design process which includes Tender Action, Evaluation and Award. When this stage is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: School admissions policies, including the selection criterion to be used where the school is oversubscribed, must comply with the 2018 Act, be non-discriminatory and be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. A school must accept all applicants unless oversubscribed. All schools must clearly set out their selection criteria in their admission policies. Schools have discretion in relation...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Policies (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 543 and 566 together. Tackling education disadvantage and helping students reach their full potential is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth, and for the Government. Currently, the DEIS programme supports almost 1,200 primary and post-primary schools, reaching approximately 260,000 students, with an annual investment of over €...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Statutory Instruments (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I was appointed as Minister for Education and Youth on the 23 January 2025, and my predecessor Ms. Norma Foley TD was Minister for Education in 2024 and to the date of my appointment in January 2025. Please find below a list of all Statutory Instruments signed by the Minister for Education and Youth in 2024 and to date in 2025. S.I. 243 of 2024 Education and Training...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Programme for Government commits to developing an appropriate mechanism to allow additional time for students with specific needs and in certain circumstances, and also to ensure that those who use assistive technology can do so in State examinations. The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has responsibility for the operation and delivery of the State examinations, and facilitates access...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Schemes (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: In May 2022, my department announced the publication of a report on the Review of Out-of-School Education Provision. This review focused on the education provision for learners under 16 years of age who have encountered difficulties staying in mainstream education. Arising from that review, a number of recommendations were made to inform future policy and provide a sustainable option...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm to the Deputy, that the school in question was issued a provisional letter of offer for 2 Special education classrooms, 1 Special Education Tuition room, 3 Mainstream classrooms and 1 construction studies room following their application for capital funding, under my Department's Additional School Accommodation Scheme. The purpose of the ASA scheme is to ensure that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 553, 554 and 556 together. Planning for the Convention on Education is ongoing, and further information will be made available in due course. I am working with my officials to develop this exciting, once in a generation opportunity for everyone living in Ireland to have their say on the future of education I am committed to ensuring that this Convention...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: Most primary schools are State-aided parish schools, with the local Bishop as school patron. It is recognised, including by the Catholic school patrons, that an educational landscape is needed which more accurately reflects the reality of our increasingly diverse society and meets the expectations parents have for their children. The Programme for Government commits to seeking to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Attendance (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 557, 558, 559 and 560 together. The School Completion Programme (SCP) is a central element of the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) strategy and operates under Tusla Education Support Service (TESS), as a commissioned service under section 56 of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013. SCP provides vital support to children and young...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Data (17 Sep 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Ferns Report was presented to the Government on 25 October 2005 and was the result of a non-statutory inquiry established by the then Minister for Health and Children in March 2003. It does not, therefore, come under the remit of my Department. However, the Deputy may wish to note that 18 religious congregations involved in the management of most of the institutions coming within the...