Results 3,221-3,240 of 19,576 for speaker:Norma Foley

Covid-19 (Special Educational Needs Provision): Statements (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: There is no question around the intent of this Government to deliver for children with additional needs. We do that in a co-operative fashion with everyone in the education sector.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Records (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department holds an archive of files relating to Industrial and Reformatory School which consists of circa 500,000 records. The records relate solely to children who were committed to these schools following a court hearing. Children were also admitted to the schools in other ways, i.e. voluntary placements, placement by parent/s or guardians or placement by local Health Authorities. In...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Human Rights (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: As outlined in previous replies, the Department undertook a review of the ex gratia scheme in response to a determination by the Independent Assessor, Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O’Neill that one of the criteria for eligibility is incompatible with the ECtHR judgement.While the ex gratia scheme was an administrative scheme, people who have experienced abuse have access to the courts system....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. 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: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: In an effort to support students and families a process to zero rate educational websites was put in place during the first lockdown, as announced by the then Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications. I am advised that the zero rating has been maintained by a number of telecoms providers and also that there is a range of unlimited mobile data packages on offer by the market. ...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Schemes (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department provides a book grant to all recognised primary and post primary schools within the Free Education Scheme in order to provide assistance for books including Book Rental Schemes. Under this scheme, the Department provided funding of €17.1 million in 2020 to all of these schools. School book rental schemes have an important role to play in reducing the cost of school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: Further to the Parliamentary Question referred to by the Deputy (No. 552 of 13 January 2021), the procedure which applies in respect of such matters does not constitute a departure from previous policy intentions indicated by successive Ministers. The property in question is owned by Kildare & Wicklow Education Training Board (KWETB). Under the Education and Training Act 2013, any...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (21 Jan 2021)

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 (GIS). The GIS uses data from a range of sources, including Child Benefit Data from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and the Department's own school enrolment databases, to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 113,100 children, including over 14,500 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020. The purpose of my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: Of the 3,963 schools (3,240 primary and 723 post-primary) in the State, 391 schools (274 primary and 117 post-primary) are currently using pre-fab rented accommodation. The date of individual rentals ranges from 2000 to 2020 and a breakdown of the school currently renting prefabs by County is attached. Similar information in respect of previous years is not readily available. I wish to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Administration (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: The public health restrictions which resulted in the closure of schools in March 2020 highlighted the absolute necessity for schools to be agile in providing for continuity of schooling in the future. As a contingency measure against the possibility of partial or full school closures, my Department has already provided a suite of guidance materials, agreed with the education partners, to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: In total there are 359 Post Primary schools offering Spanish in the three Senior Cycle Programmes. The breakdown of these figures is set out in tabular form in the attached spreadsheet. The information is based on the most recent October Returns which were submitted to the Department. Post Primary Schools offering Spanish at Senior Cycle Level Broken Down By Programme PP...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department has an enhanced Occupational Health Service (OHS) in place to provide employers with occupational health advice in relation to employees’ fitness for work. Medmark, the current OHS provider has a process in place for school staff, including SNAs and SEN teachers, who may have health concerns about their risk of serious illness from contracting COVID-19 through workplace...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: The Government published the Roadmap for the Full Return to School, along with details of a financial package of over €375 million to support the implementation of the measures in the roadmap, following approval by Government. The range of supports being made available to all schools in the free education scheme include additional financial supports to provide for PPE and hand hygiene...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Facilities (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: The delivery of high quality internet connectivity for all schools is a key objective of my Department. It is accepted that good connectivity is essential to ensure that schools are facilitated to progress the embedding of digital technologies in teaching and learning and for the implementation of new and revised curriculum. Under the School Broadband Programme the Department continually...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 113,100 children, including over 14,500 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020. The purpose of my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: It remains Governments' intention to operate the conventional 2021 Leaving Certificate examinations, with appropriate public health measures in place. This view is shared by the State Examinations Commission (SEC), which has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations Planning for these examinations is underway by the SEC and the Department. It...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: European Court of Human Rights (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: The ex gratiascheme, was established in 2015 to provide an effective remedy for a specific category of people, namely those persons who had commenced domestic litigation but who had discontinued those proceedings following High Court and Supreme Court judgments and because of this discontinuation had no domestic remedy. The review of the scheme has yet to be concluded. As part of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: It remains Governments' intention to operate the conventional 2021 Leaving Certificate examinations, with appropriate public health measures in place. This view is shared by the State Examinations Commission (SEC), which has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations Planning for these examinations is underway by the SEC and the Department. It...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Administration (21 Jan 2021)

Norma Foley: Neither my Department nor the State Examinations Commission has any role in relation to the setting, running or marking of mock examinations. Decisions to hold mock examinations are taken by individual schools. The format of these examinations varies from school to school and not all schools run mock examinations. Schools that run mock examinations will themselves decide how these can be...