Results 421-440 of 623 for speaker:Síle de Valera

Seanad: Special Educational Needs. (28 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: I thank the Senator for raising this matter as it provides me with the opportunity to clarify the position of the Department of Education and Science on home tuition for the children as referred to by the Senator. The Department of Education and Science considers that school-based education provision is the most appropriate intervention for all children, including those with special...

Seanad: Special Educational Needs. (28 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: I will convey the Senator's concerns to the Minister.

Seanad: Prison Building Programme. (28 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: I am deputising in this debate this evening for the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy McDowell. I thank the Senator for giving the Minister this opportunity to clarify the intentions of the Irish Prison Service on the proposed prison development on Spike Island. The need for a new prison to alleviate the current overcrowding at Cork Prison has been well documented. More...

Seanad: Private Bus Licences. (28 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: The overall policy framework for the future of public bus transport operations was set out in the programme for Government and included the following specific commitments: the replacement of the Road Transport Act 1932 with modernised legislation to allow, inter alia, for new services in the bus market; further progress will be made on upgrading the bus fleet, providing bus priorities both in...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (29 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department is reviewing the closed school rule. This will involve consultation with relevant interested parties, having regard to other urgent priorities within the school transport area.

Written Answers — Vocational Education Committees: Vocational Education Committees (29 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department provides funding to VECs to assist towards the child care expenses of participants in certain further education programmes in order to facilitate the enrolment on these programmes of people for whom they were designed but who had been unable to enrol on them because of child care responsibilities. These are the Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS), Youthreach and...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (29 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department has requested the transport liaison officer for the relevant county to submit a report on the situation referred to by the Deputy. When the report is received and considered, my Department will be in touch with the family concerned.

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (30 Jun 2006)

Síle de Valera: I thank the Senator for raising this matter and for giving me the opportunity of outlining to the House the actions being taken by the Department of Education and Science to address the school accommodation needs of Rush, Lusk and Balbriggan. The Department is conscious that these areas of Fingal County Council are rapidly developing and, as a result, there has been a marked increase in...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: The Youth Work Act, 2001, provides a legal framework for the provision of youth work programmes and services to be organised by the Minister for Education and Science, the Vocational Education Committees and national and regional youth work organisations. Section 1 of the Act provides for sections to be commenced at different stages. Sections 2-7, 17, 18 and 24 have been commenced to date. A...

Written Answers — Adult Education: Adult Education (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: I propose to take Questions Nos. 45, 89 and 105 together. The National Adult Learning Council was formed in March 2002 on an ad hoc basis with the intention that it would be established as a statutory body under Section 54 of the Education Act 1998. Following the formation of the ad-hoc Council, concerns emerged that the functions envisaged for the Council were too wide-ranging and were not...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: Last July, Minister Hanafin and myself announced a package of measures to include the phasing out of the "3 for 2" seating arrangement on school buses. The first phase commenced in September, 2005 on post-primary school transport services with the aim of providing each child with a seat by the end of December, 2005. This phase of the programme has now successfully concluded and plans are well...

Written Answers — Education Schemes: Education Schemes (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: I propose to take Questions Nos. 59, 73, 79 and 93 together. Government commitment to the PLC sector, by reference to the resources applied in teachers' pay, non-pay running costs, student support and certification costs, is very significant. We have increased the number of PLC places by 60% since 1996/97. Indeed, the number of PLC places approved for 2005/2006 is up by more than 1,600 on the...

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: The Youth Work Act, 2001, provides a legal framework for the provision of youth work programmes and services to be organised by the Minister for Education and Science, the Vocational Education Committees and national and regional youth work organisations. Section 1 of the Act provides for sections to be commenced at different stages. Sections 2-7, 17, 18 and 24 have been commenced to date. A...

Written Answers — Youthreach Programme: Youthreach Programme (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: The Youthreach Programme is an Inter-Departmental initiative which provides two years integrated education, training and work experience to young people aged 15-20 years who are at least six months in the labour market and who have left school early without any qualifications or vocational training. The programme funded by my Department is delivered in out of school centres and is managed by...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: Catchment boundaries have their origins in the establishment of free post-primary education in the late 1960's. For planning purposes, the country was divided into geographic districts, each with several primary schools feeding into a post-primary centre with one or more post-primary schools. The intention was that these defined districts would facilitate the orderly planning of school...

Written Answers — Literacy Levels: Literacy Levels (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: Adult Literacy is, and will remain, my top priority in adult education. Since 1997, funding from my Department for adult literacy has increased incrementally from €1 million to almost €23 million in 2006. As a consequence, the number of clients catered for annually has increased from 5,000 in 1997 to over 35,000 in 2005. This represents a significant achievement by any standards, and I...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department has requested Bus Éireann to furnish a report on the number and nature of accidents that have occurred on school buses since January 2006. It would assist if the Deputy could be more specific regarding the type of incident that he has in mind.

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: The safety of children travelling on the school transport service has been top of my agenda since coming into office. I have effected a range of measures to improve the quality and safety of school transport services both in the vicinity of, and on, school buses. In January, 2005, I launched a Warning Flashing Light Project on 22 buses in Ennis, Co Clare and I am currently examining proposals...

Written Answers — Learning Initiatives: Learning Initiatives (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department is strongly committed to improving participation and achievement at every level of education. For those in the workforce who want to improve their literacy levels, there are workplace literacy schemes in operation around the country. The National Adult Literacy Agency has trained a number of tutors to provide literacy in the workplace and has promoted the availability of this...

Written Answers — Literacy Levels: Literacy Levels (4 Jul 2006)

Síle de Valera: My Department funds the provision of adult literacy, which is delivered by the Vocational Education Committees, from the annual Adult Literacy and Community Education (ALCES) grant to VECs. This includes literacy and the teaching of English to non-Irish nationals. Funding for adult literacy has been increased incrementally in recent years from just under €1 million in 1997 to over €23...