Results 5,021-5,040 of 5,979 for speaker:Michael Moynihan

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Home Schooling (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: My Department's Home Tuition Grant Schemes provide funding towards the provision of a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of specific reasons, are unable to attend school. The aim of the Department is to meet the needs of families and to ensure every child is allocated a suitable school placement. The preferred approach is that children are educated in school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive a befitting education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE). Of the 3,336 special classes nationwide, 69 are in County Westmeath. 10 of these are new for the 2024/25 school year, 7 at primary level and 3 at post-primary level....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: As you are aware enabling children with special educational needs to receive a befitting education is a priority for government. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs. They advise that the local special educational needs organiser (SENO) is working closely...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: The pilot for enhanced in-school therapy support to special schools is an integrated pilot programme which sees the delivery of enhanced in-school therapy supports provided by the HSE’s Children’s Disability Network Teams and will be supported by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE). The focus of this pilot is to provide the effective delivery of enhanced...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive a befitting education is a priority for this government. It is also a key priority for my department and for the National Council for Special Education (NCSE). The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (20 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: As you are aware enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for government. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for coordinating and advising on the education provision for children with special educational needs. Special needs assistants (SNAs) play a central role in the successful inclusion of students with...

Disability: Statements (25 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I am delighted to contribute to this debate. In recent years, I gained huge experience as Chair of the disability committee. That committee worked extremely well on a cross-party basis in the previous Dáil to ensure that the voices of disabled citizens, their families and their communities would be heard. I understand that another iteration of this committee will be set up for this...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Special Educational Needs (25 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I congratulate the Leas-Cheann Comhairle on his elevation to the position and wish him the very best of luck. It has been a long time since we shared an office in the engineering block many years ago. We have both served long apprenticeships in this building. I thank Deputy Quaide for raising the issue. I stress that enabling students with special educational needs to receive an...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Special Educational Needs (25 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: There is funding available in the current year for additional classes. In his earlier contribution Deputy Quaide mentioned Waterford and Dungarvan, and it would be remiss of me not to refer to that. We have had a number of meetings in relation to the issues there as well. Most recently we met with the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and with officials to try and make sure there is a...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I thank the Deputy for the question, and I look forward to working with everybody in this role for the betterment of all because there are, as always, huge challenges in education, which is the bedrock of our society. The Government is fully committed to children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the programme for Government makes a number of commitments to...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: As we understand it, the plans we have in place and the placements we are working on with school patrons and schools right across the country will exceed the demand and there will be sufficient places. However, we will have to work with all families and school authorities to make sure they are in place in a timely manner. We have to be better at getting information through the AIM programme...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: Everything that is needed is being put in place. This includes school buildings and spare capacity in schools. If necessary, section 37A will be invoked to ensure we have places. The Department and the NCSE are extremely serious about making sure that this is done. They have been working very hard over recent weeks to bring that about and will continue to do so in the coming weeks. I...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I thank the Deputy for the question. My clear understanding is that there is no proposed reduction in special education teaching, SET, hours for the school referred to by the Deputy for the 2025-26 school year. This school has seen a reduction of over 2% in enrolments since the 2024-25 school year and its SET allocation remains at 22.5 hours for the 2025-26 school year. The special...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I come from a very rural community myself and I see the fantastic work that is being done right across the education sector in both rural and urban areas. Practitioners at school level, teachers, SET teachers and special needs assistants, make an enormous contribution. The method of allocating SET hours is very carefully monitored and has been over many years, going back to the time of...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: It is vitally important that all schools, including rural schools, are protected. Many smaller rural schools provide fantastic facilities. Where children who have additional needs go to rural schools, the school community is smaller. Those schools work extremely well. I take the point that these schools support everybody. As the population grows, it is important that rural schools and...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I have no difficulty with that but our information clearly states that there is no reduction in SET hours for the 2025-26 school year.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Accommodation (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I thank Deputy Crowe very much for the question on Clonlara. I can confirm to him that the Department is in receipt of an application for funding for major capital works from the school in question. The application has been assessed under the Department's additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme. For background, since 2020, the Department has invested more than €5.7 billion...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Accommodation (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: There is no doubt that when lived experiences of being and working in the classrooms is brought to the floor of the Chamber, it brings the matter very much to life in the political forum. Clonlara school applied for major capital works. An application is assessed following the site visit by the Department’s technical team. A brief of accommodation was issued to the board of...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Accommodation (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I thank the Deputy. I accept the point. In the departmental documents, it is clearly stated there is no direct internal connection to other facilities. The Department clearly understands the challenges in Clonlara. What we have to do now is ensure the project proceeds through the various stages so the building can be got up and running. I commit to working with the Deputy to ensure this...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: School Accommodation (27 Feb 2025)

Michael Moynihan: I thank Deputy O'Reilly very much for the question about additional school places in Fingal West. I thank her for raising this matter, which gives me the opportunity to set out to the Dáil the position with regard to a shortfall of school places at both primary and secondary levels in Fingal West. It is an absolute priority to ensure that every child in the State has access to a...