Results 7,401-7,420 of 19,598 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The project to which the deputy refers has been devolved for delivery to Limerick & Clare Education & Training Board (LCETB) The ETB has confirmed that the procurement of the Design Team is almost complete and the appointment of the team is imminent. The next step for this Design Team will be to design the buildings, obtain the necessary statutory planning permissions, and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The school to which the deputy refers was granted approval for the refurbishment and extension of its school building under the Additional Accommodation Scheme 2015. My Department's Technical Team is currently reviewing a Stage 2B report with the objective of progressing the project to planning stage. The Department will be in contact with the school authorities following the conclusion...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The permanent building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is being delivered under my Department's Design and Build programme which uses a professional external Project Manager to progress the project through the relevant stages of architectural planning, tender and construction. An application for Planning Permission was submitted to the relevant Local Authority in June 2021. A...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: Under Project Ireland 2040, the education sector will receive a total of approximately €4.4 billion capital investment over the period 2021-2025. This significant investment allows us to move forward with certainty on our ambitious plans and deliver high quality building projects, with a real focus on sustainability, for school communities across Ireland. My Department has a large...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Site Acquisitions (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: Officials in my Department continue to liaise with officials in Cork City Council in relation to the identification and acquisition of suitable sites for the school in question. A potential suitable site has been identified in conjunction with the Local Authority and discussions are ongoing in relation to exploring all options available to my Department to obtain possession of this site....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Management (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: Due to the legal nature of the documents and data protection considerations my Department is currently in contact with the other parties to the agreement regarding the release of the data sought. My officials will follow up with the Deputy to advise him of the outcome of these contacts.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Defective Building Materials (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: To date, only a handful of schools in Donegal have concerns about the presence of mica and the Department is dealing with them through its Emergency Works Scheme. The current arrangement is that if a school suspects there is Mica present they should submit an Emergency Works Scheme application for funding to have testing carried out. If the test results show Mica is present the school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: Contact tracing remains in place for primary school age children who are household close contacts. Any child who is identified by the HSE as a household close contact has to restrict their movements and not attend school except for those who have recovered from COVID-19 following a positive PCR or antigen test carried out since December 1st 2021. In addition from the end of November...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 432 and 433 together. My Department has always been guided by public health advice in relation to appropriate COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures in place in schools. Schools continue to operate in line with their Covid-19 Response Plans, which set out a range of mitigation measures focused on keeping Covid-19 out of schools and reducing the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: My Department has always been guided by public health advice in relation to appropriate COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures in place in schools. Current public health advice makes it a requirement for a face mask to be worn by teachers, staff in schools, students attending post-primary school, and students from third class upwards in primary school. These measures protect...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Management (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: Teacher allocations to schools are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment on the previous 30 September. Measures announced in Budget 2022 have given a commitment to providing administrative principals to schools that currently have teaching principals and two or more special classes. Arrangements for staffing in primary...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Irish Language (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: There are 249 primary and 66 post-primary schools teaching some or all pupils through the medium of Irish. Please see additional information at the link.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Irish Language (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The school patronage process as it is currently constituted dates from 2011. Therefore it is a relatively recent process in the context of the overall history of the State. The Deputy’s question has to be answered in that context. The table at the link summarises the medium of instruction in respect of the overall number of schools and also summarises the medium of instruction for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy recently completed Stage 2(b) Detailed Design and was authorised to proceed to tender stage on 11th February. A Tender stage normally takes between 6-8 months to complete.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The Deputy will be aware that a building project for the school in question is included on the Department's School Building Programme to be delivered as part of the National Development Plan (NDP). The project brief is currently being finalised with a view to progressing the project into the architectural planning process as soon as possible. My Department will continue to engage with the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Broadband Infrastructure (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: My Department operates the Schools Broadband Programme at an annual cost of some €13m, providing connectivity to schools through a range of technologies at the best level of connectivity available based on local infrastructure. The school referred to by the Deputy is currently on the best available service of 12mb wireless broadband connection, which is a dedicated service to the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: The major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy recently completed Stage 2(b) Detailed Design and was authorised to proceed to tender stage on 11th February. A Tender stage normally takes between 6-8 months to complete.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy is aware, a number of published reports have highlighted the ongoing needs of survivors and the lifelong difficulties they experience due to their childhood experiences in residential care. A survivor-led consultative forum was also established and has provided a very good insight into the areas where supports may be provided into the future. This work is currently being...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: School secretaries and caretakers are valued members of our school communities and my Department is fully aware of the vitally important role played by them in the running of our schools. The majority of primary and voluntary secondary schools receive assistance to provide for secretarial, caretaking and cleaning services under grant schemes. Where a school employs a staff member to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (15 Feb 2022)

Norma Foley: School secretaries and caretakers are valued members of our school communities and my Department is fully aware of the vitally important role played by them in the running of our schools. The majority of primary and voluntary secondary schools receive assistance to provide for secretarial, caretaking and cleaning services under grant schemes. Where a school employs a staff member to...