Results 19,281-19,300 of 19,870 for speaker:Norma Foley

Estimates for Public Services 2020 (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I thank the Deputies for their engagement and questions, some of which were repeated. I want to be absolutely unequivocal regarding the reopening of schools. My first engagement on appointment was meeting with a wide variety of valued stakeholders in education, including parents, teachers, students, managerial bodies, principals and deputy principals. Following those consultations, I was...

Estimates for Public Services 2020 (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I anticipate that announcements on the reopening of schools will come at the end of this month. I imagine that the costs will be available at that time, though perhaps not all of them will be. It would be premature at this stage to put any figures before the House because discussions are still ongoing. I will highlight some of the points Deputies have made regarding the reopening of the...

Estimates for Public Services 2020 (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I move the following Revised Estimates: Vote 26 — Education and Skills (Revised) That a sum not exceeding €10,133,218,000 be granted to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of December, 2020, for the salaries and expenses of the Office of the Minister for Education and Skills, for certain services administered by that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Establishment (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: 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, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise. With this information, my Department carries out nationwide demographic exercises to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: At present there are 5 stages of architectural planning involved in the delivery of major school projects. The stages reflect the Capital Works Management Framework developed by the Department of Public Expenditure & Reform. The stages are as follows: Stage 1 – Preliminary (Site Suitability and Investigations, Exploration of Design Options) Stage 2 – Design (which is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The Deputy will be aware that a building project to provide improved accommodation for the schools in question is included on the Department's Capital Programme to be delivered as part of the National Development Plan (NDP). The options for providing this accommodation are currently being explored with the Patron and my Department is awaiting further information from the Patron. My...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2019/20 school year over 120,000 children, including over 14,200 children with special educational needs, were transported in over 5,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres at a cost of over...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The tender process for this school building project is running as part of a wider process involving the tender of 8 major projects. The first phase of this tender process to create a shortlist of contractors is now complete. Stage 2 of the tender process is due to commence. The tender documents for this stage are currently being finalised for tenders to issue. This stage of the tender...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: My Department published details of Summer Provision 2020 – Reconnecting with Education including a home-based programme for children with complex special educational needs. Parents/Guardians select and engage tutors/SNAs for the provision of the home based programme in a private arrangement which is then funded through the scheme. The role of Tutors and Special Needs Assistants engaged...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Costs (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The student accommodation referred to by the Deputy is a private student accommodation development, and the refund or cancellation policies should be set out in the license agreement signed at the beginning of license term. In the first instance students should engage with their accommodation provider to see if an arrangement can be reached in regard to a refund. If this is not possible,...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: If the school authority considers the works referred to by the Deputy to be a priority, it may use the minor works grant which all primary schools receive to carry out the works in full, or on a phased basis as the grant permits. Having said the above, it is open to the school to apply for funding for same under my Department's Emergency Works Scheme. It may do so if it believes that the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Child Abuse (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The ex gratia scheme established in the wake of the ECtHR in the Louise O'Keeffe case was set up to deal with a specific cohort – people who had discontinued proceedings in the domestic courts following High Court and Supreme Court judgments. The review of the ex gratia scheme is ongoing. The issues involved are highly sensitive and complex and require very careful deliberation...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: A system of Calculated Grades was put in place by my predecessor due to the inability to run the normal Leaving Certificate examinations this year. The purpose of this process is to allow as many students as possible to progress to employment, further education and training, or higher education in a way that is fair and equitable to all Leaving Certificate students. For the calculated...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is being delivered under my Department's Design & Build programme and the project is currently at an advanced stage of Architectural Planning. It is anticipated that the application for planning permission will be lodged shortly.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Public Sector Pensions (16 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The statutory basis for Ill Health Retirement pension benefits for primary school teachers are contained in S.I. No. 434 of 2009 of the Primary School Teachers Pension Scheme 2009. Officials from the Pension Unit of my Department have notified the person to whom the Deputy refers that their application for retirement on grounds of permanent ill health has been granted, and that the date...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (15 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 99 and 104 together. The Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are governed by the Universities Act 1997, the Institutes of Technologies Acts 1992 to 2006 and the Technological Universities Act 2018. Within the meaning of these Acts, higher education institutions are autonomous with regard to management of their academic affairs including admissions...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (15 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I am very conscious of the staffing schedule and the need to prioritise teacher allocations in primary schools given their vital role in communities around the country. I am looking at how best to make further progress in reducing the primary teacher ratio in the context of the Programme for Government implementation. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staff (15 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The NCSE has responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of SNAs and reviews. My Department does not have a role in making individual school determinations. Schools have been notified of the arrangements for the allocation of SNA support in respect of students in mainstream classes for 2020/21. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (15 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: My Department has no role in awarding or conferring chartered status on a registered educational or membership body. I am advised that this is not a title typically conferred by the Irish State but has historically been awarded by the relevant authorities in the UK.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Institutions (15 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: To assist with the development of plans for the re-opening and operation of higher education in an environment that may require social distancing and other public health requirements, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is engaging with relevant stakeholders from the higher education sector. The importance of informing students of arrangements for...