Results 13,201-13,220 of 17,531 for speaker:Jan O'Sullivan

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards Staff (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: My Department is engaged in a project to devise future complementary organisational designs for ETBs and SOLAS in order to reflect their new roles. The objectives of the project are to ensure that the ETBs and SOLAS are fit for purpose; to ensure that the organisational design of ETBs and SOLAS are aligned to their new roles and to each other; to put in place a plan with practical levers...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I can confirm that my Department has received an application from Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB) to refurbish its offices at Lanesboro Street, Roscommon. A feasibility report submitted by GRETB has been examined by officials in my Department and I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department will be in further contact with GRETB regarding its application in the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Reform (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: Student grant applications are means tested on gross income from all sources earned inside and outside the State within a specified reference period. The means test arrangements of the Student Grant Scheme are applied nationally on the same basis to both employed and self-employed applicants. Gross income before the deduction of income tax or universal social charge, is assessed with certain...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Support Schemes (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 685 and 686 together. As the Deputy is aware, an Expert Group, chaired by Peter Cassells has been established to examine future funding options for higher education. The objective is to identify a range of approaches that, combined, will achieve a sustainable funding base to address the continual expansion of the sector while protecting the quality of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that I recently announced that I had secured Government approval for an additional 610 Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts which may be made available for allocation to schools to support children with special educational needs with assessed care needs. From the beginning of September, there will be 11,820 whole time equivalent SNA posts available in schools to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Capitation Grants (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: The last Budget included an increase in spending on education for the first time in recent years, amounting to additional funding of €60m during 2015. That increase has provided funding for 1,700 additional teachers and SNAs to be recruited for our schools, as well as funding important reforms. However, it was not possible to secure the funding which would be required to also...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: National Council for Special Education (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that on 21st May, 2015, I announced that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) will increase its allocation of Resource Teacher Posts to schools by over 9% for the start of the coming school year. The NCSE will allocate 6,454 resource teacher posts to schools for September 2015, which is an increase of 554 posts-or 9.4% since September 2014. Even in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Springboard Programme (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: Springboard which was introduced in 2011, is a specific initiative that strategically targets funding of free higher education courses in areas where there are real, identified labour market skills shortages or employment opportunities. The annual cost of Springboard since 2011 is as follows: 2011 - €8.7m 2012 - €10.1m 2013 - €18.3m 2014 - €23.6m

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: An examination of the apprenticeship data in the existing trades demonstrates there was a 40% increase in the number of apprentice registrations in 2014 compared to 2013. The prognosis forecast for future apprenticeships registrations remains strong. The number of apprentices being registered in 2015 by employers is 17% higher than the corresponding time in 2014. SOLAS has forecast an annual...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Minor Works Scheme Expenditure (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that in November 2014, I announced the allocation of more than €28 million to primary schools under the Minor Works Grant Scheme. This will allow schools to carry out improvement works to school buildings and grounds. It is open to schools to prioritise the works they wish to undertake within the terms of the scheme. The works to which the Deputy refers...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: National Council for Special Education (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Relocation (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that discussions are ongoing between my Department and the Patron of the school, in question, in respect of the school's long term requirements. The Deputy may be aware that the school submitted a proposal through their Patron to relocate the school within the Portlaoise area to meet its long term needs. My Department has scheduled a technical site visit to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: National Council for Special Education (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: The Deputy may be aware that the State supports early intervention for children with special educational needs through providing funding to a number of crèche/pre-school settings including: early Intervention settings in mainstream and special schools; early Intervention settings in HSE funded service providers; private pre-school settings supported by the Early Childhood Care &...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: The information that is available in relation to the number of teachers in primary schools on a county basis as provided by the managerial authorities of the schools is published in the Statistics Section of my Department's website. The link to access the information is at www.education.ie/en/Publications/Statistics/Data-on-Individu al-Schools/ Statistics on a county basis are not compiled...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Qualifications (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: As the Deputy will be aware the Education and Training Boards (ETBs) are statutory bodies with their own corporate status established under the Education and Training Boards Act 2013. Section 24 of the Education Act 1998, as amended by the Education (Amendment) Act 2012, provides that the appointment, suspension and dismissal of teachers are the responsibility of boards of management of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (16 Jul 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: The correspondence referenced by the Deputy was received in my Department and a reply has issued to the sender, setting out the background and context of the matter. As the Deputy will appreciate, given the number of requests for my attention it is not possible to accede to a meeting in all cases. In relation to the substantive issues raised, as previously outlined to the Deputy, the...

Confidence in Taoiseach, the Attorney General and the Government: Motion (22 Sep 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: Listening to the debate this afternoon I am reminded of Tom Kettle's reflections on politics:there will be always joy and loyalty enough left to keep you unwavering in the faith that politics is not as it seems in clouded moments, a mere gabble and squabble of selfish interests, but that it is the State in action. And the State is the name by which we call the great human conspiracy against...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions (22 Sep 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: Caranua, the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Board, is an independent statutory body established pursuant to the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012 to oversee the use of the cash contributions of up to €110 million, pledged by the religious congregations, to support the needs of survivors of institutional child abuse. Section 3 of the 2012 Act allows for a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Qualifications (22 Sep 2015)

Jan O'Sullivan: Under the Teaching Council Acts, the Teaching Council is the regulator and standards body for the teaching profession. One of the main functions of the Council is to register teachers. Teachers are registered in accordance with the Teaching Council [Registration] Regulations 2009, which set out the standards teachers must meet if they are to be registered. Regulation 3, covering...