Results 1,061-1,080 of 19,559 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: National Educational Psychological Service (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I can inform the Deputy that my Department's National Educational Psychological Service provides educational psychological support to all primary and post-primary schools. This involves direct support in the event of a critical incident, access to national and regional support and development work to build school capacity to support students, access to a NEPS psychologist for responses to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Advertising (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: The Department's costs in relation to communications strategy initiatives in 2019 and to date in 2020 are set out in the following table. Year Campaign Cost (€) 2020 School Reopening – Radio, Print and Internet advertising €119,202.94 2020 Leaving Cert Calculated Grades advertising (July)...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 743 and 748 together. On Monday, 27July, my Department published the report to Government "Reopening Our Schools, The Roadmap for the Full Return to School". This Roadmap set outs how schools will reopen for all students from the end of August and what the operation of our schools will look like and be sustainable in a COVID-19 context. It has been developed...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 745 and 747 together. My Department's website shows the current position on all school projects on the Capital Programme. These are listed on a county basis and show the school project status and the stage that each project is at. Each individual project is subject to its own particular circumstances and the timeline for delivery of each project can vary...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I can confirm to the Deputy that the school to which he refers has been given approval for a project to be delivered under my Department's Additional Accommodation Scheme 2018.  This project will provide for 5 Mainstream Classrooms with standard WCs, 4 Mainstream Classrooms with standard WCs (Prefab Replacement), 1 WC for assisted users, 2 Science Labs with 1 Prep Area and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.  In the 2019/2020 year over 120,000 children, including over 14,200...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy is aware, last Monday I announced The Roadmap for The Full Return to School, along with funding of over €370 million to support primary and post primary schools as they prepare for reopening. It is recognised that a school in preparing for full reopening, may require some reconfiguration works to ensure that all available space in the school is availed...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I was pleased to publish the report to Government “Reopening Our Schools, The Roadmap for the Full Return to School” and announce a funding package of more than €370 million for primary and post primary schools to supports its implementation. As part of the package of supports, additional teachers are being provided to support the reopening of primary schools in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy is aware, last Monday I announced The Roadmap for The Full Return to School, along with funding of over €370 million to support primary and post primary schools as they prepare for reopening. Schools must maximise the space within the classroom to facilitate the pupils in the classroom and maximise the space within the existing school building in the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: My Department is working with the education partners on measures to address anticipated teacher supply pressures arising from additional posts in the system and to meet the demand for teachers to fill short term substitutable vacancies. The Covid-19 environment is impacting on the willingness of teachers to travel and work abroad and we are hearing from post-primary schools that there are...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Gaelcholáistí Issues (30 Jul 2020)

Norma Foley: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that a new Gaelcholáiste will be opening in Maynooth for the start of the new school year. The patron is Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: I thank the committee for the invitation to attend today in regard to the reopening of the schools sector. I am accompanied from the Department by Ms Deirdre Shanley, assistant secretary, Ms Aoife Conduit, assistant secretary, Mr. Dalton Tattan, assistant secretary, Dr. Harold Hislop, chief inspector, Ms Yvonne Keating, deputy chief inspector, and Mr. Eamonn Murtagh, director in the planning...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: Okay. Updated health advice from NPHET has an impact on the operation of post-primary school transport services. The Government decided that the arrangements made for primary school transport schemes will proceed as planned when schools reopen and these services will operate fully with additional measures in place, such as preassigned seating and additional hygiene and cleaning measures. ...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: In general, I wish to acknowledge the questions and the original points the Deputy has raised. On the question of whether schools will stay open and whether they will do so on a long-term basis, he has raised an important point. Experts, including our Chief Medical Officer, CMO, Professor Philip Nolan, and others have said that schools by their nature are essentially very safe places and...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: I will come specifically to the questions.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: However, I do want to make the point-----

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: -----that there is a community responsibility in making our schools safe. It is hugely important we recognise that if the community wishes for our schools to stay open in the long term, the community must accept responsibility for supporting schools and the good work they do. We have had a number of engagements with the Department of Health and the HSE and, just some time ago, a...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: The issue the Deputy has raised is the specific case of parents or family members who are categorised as being at high risk. I absolutely appreciate the difficulties, the trauma and the worry for people who are in a situation of that nature. However my suggestion would be - and it is appropriate - that they would take guidance from their GP and discuss it in a medical context. The advice...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: To clarify, in our roadmap we are clear about the supports that are out there. We are clear that issues will arise with children or indeed parents being anxious about the return to school and we are clear about the supports that are there for that. As such, there is no absence of clarity but if there is an individual case the Deputy wishes to raise, I have no difficulty in looking at that...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Covid-19: Review of the Reopening of Schools (Resumed) (2 Sep 2020)

Norma Foley: On school transport, the Deputy will be aware of the original advice from NPHET, which identified children as a single cohort in a controlled environment. That meant there was no requirement for social distancing other than for masks to be worn by second-level students on buses. The additional resources were made available for hand sanitiser, PPE for the bus driver, measures for cleaning...