Results 841-860 of 17,382 for speaker:Helen McEntee

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

Helen McEntee: My Department recognises the vitally important role of secretaries and caretakers within school communities, as a key link between students, school leaders and other staff, ensuring that both the core needs of the school are met. Since September 2023 my department has been providing a payroll service for former grant funded school secretaries. This happened on foot of an Agreement reached in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 was published in 2022 and is underpinned by funding of €200m over the course of the strategy to support its implementation, which was committed to under Ireland’s National Development Plan (NDP). The funding allocation model provided for in the National Development Plan commits to funding to issue over the period of the NDP, applied by...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (17 Jul 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...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Youth Services (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 163 and 290 together. Responsibility for Youth Affairs policy and operations transferred to my department on 1 May 2025. All operational funding and support measures have now transferred seamlessly for the 35 national organisations, 16 ETBs, and other related organisations such as Gaisce and Léargas. Youth work and youth services provide immense...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Artificial Intelligence (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I assume the Deputy is referring to the possible use of generative artificial intelligence, Gen AI, in the context of assessment for State certification purposes. Artificial intelligence continues to be a dynamic space that presents us with both challenges and opportunities. Since the 2023 examinations, the State Examinations Commission (SEC) has updated its general and subject specific...

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

Helen McEntee: My Department recognises the vitally important role of secretaries and caretakers within school communities, as a key link between students, school leaders and other staff, ensuring that the core needs of the school are met. Since September 2023 my department has been providing a payroll service for former grant funded school secretaries. This happened on foot of an Agreement reached in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: My department has a robust forward planning process which considers population and enrolment data. In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a geographical information system, using data from a range of sources, including CSO census data, child benefit and school enrolment...

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

Helen McEntee: The Deputy will appreciate that all applications from schools for major capital works must be considered in the context of overall priorities, capital funding, capacity requirements and climate action commitments. In managing the progression of the existing pipeline of projects within the allocated capital funding and in line with the Government’s Infrastructure Guidelines, the...

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

Helen McEntee: The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has responsibility for the operation and delivery of the State examinations, and facilitates access to the examinations through its scheme of reasonable accommodations at the certificate examinations, otherwise known as the RACE scheme. I have asked the SEC to respond directly to the Deputy in relation to the accommodations currently in place under...

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

Helen McEntee: The organisation in question is an independent voluntary organisation governed by its independent Board. As such, the establishment of a redress scheme is a matter for the organisation to determine. It is not appropriate for my Department to otherwise comment in relation to ongoing legal matters involving this independent voluntary organisation. The organisation receives some of its...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: This government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective. The school referred to by the Deputy was one of four new schools established for the 2024/25 school year in Counties Meath, Kildare, Limerick and in Gorey, County Wexford. The...

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

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 283, 284, 285, 286 and 287 together. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) is the psychological service of the Department of Education and Youth and provides critical services to the almost 1 million children and young people and almost 100,000 staff who work in our primary, post-primary and special schools daily. The vital and broad-ranging...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Trade Unions (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: School secretaries and caretakers are at the heart of the school community and are the key interface between students, parents, school leaders and other staff. Without them, our schools would be unsustainable. In supporting these vital school staff members, we also support the school community as a whole. Since September 2023 my department has been providing a payroll service for former...

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

Helen McEntee: The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The primary staffing arrangements for the 2025/26 school year are set out in Circular 0011/2025. The staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all...

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

Helen McEntee: The Department recognises the vitally important role of Secretaries and Caretakers within school communities, as a key link between students, parents, school leaders and other staff, ensuring that both the administrative and the caretaking needs of the school are met. Without them, our schools would be unsustainable. The Department of Education and Youth is not the direct employer of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Electoral Commission (17 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I am advised that, as part of its work under the Electoral Reform Act 2022, an Coimisiún Toghcháin delivers educational and information programmes to promote public awareness of, and participation in, the State’s electoral and democratic processes and encourage the public to vote at electoral events. My Department is working with An Coimisiún Toghcháin, as a member...

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

Helen McEntee: This government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective. In relation to increasing provision in special schools, there are five new special schools being established for the 2025/26 school year - one of which is in the North Cork City...

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

Helen McEntee: I recently announced the launch of a pilot Single Application System for admission to first year at post-primary schools for the 2026 / 2027 school year in five towns experiencing enrolment pressures. The pilot will provide a single online application form for parents or guardians who want to apply for a first-year mainstream and special class place in post primary schools in Athenry,...

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

Helen McEntee: I am committed to Senior Cycle Redevelopment and the implementation of the programme of work involved. As I confirmed in April, May and last month, implementation will continue with the introduction of the first tranche of new and revised Leaving Certificate subjects from this September 2025. The full redevelopment of Senior Cycle will not be delivered by September 2025 as the Deputy...

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

Helen McEntee: The purpose of Parental Leave is to allow a teacher a period of unpaid leave to care for their child. In line with the provisions of the Parental Leave Act (as amended), a teacher may avail of Parental Leave in blocks of at least one week up to a maximum of 26 weeks. Each period of Parental Leave must be a minimum duration of 7 consecutive days including weekends, school closures and days...