Results 14,581-14,600 of 15,994 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 172,500 children, are transported daily in approximately 7,900 vehicles across 10,300 routes daily to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. These daily trips cover over 100 million kilometres. This figure includes over...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: My department, together with the National Council for Special Education, has been working with parents, schools, patron bodies and other stakeholders in Dublin to provide sufficient specialist school placements for children with special educational needs. The special school referred to is one of the 5 new special schools due to be opened for the 2025/26 school year to meet the demand for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Training (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: While there are a number of primary initial teacher education programmes, there is currently one programme provided entirely through the medium of Gaeilge. This is the Baitsiléir san Oideachas trí Mheán na Gaeilge (Bunmhúinteoireacht)/Bachelor of Education through the Medium of Irish (Primary), which is provided by the Marino Institute of Education. In addition, Marino...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: As part of the Government’s wider, long-standing cooperation with the Northern Ireland Executive on educational attainment issues, the Government in February 2024 allocated up to €24 million from the Shared Island Fund to enable a pilot cooperation programme to address educational underachievement. My Department and the Department of Education in Northern Ireland have...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The RAISE Programme in Northern Ireland is an initiative of the Department of Education in Northern Ireland. It is designed to support the implementation of the findings and recommendations on educational disadvantage contained in the “A Fair Start” report, prepared by an Expert Panel in Northern Ireland and endorsed by the Northern Ireland Executive in 2021. It is a pilot...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The RAISE Programme in Northern Ireland is an initiative of the Department of Education in Northern Ireland. It is designed to support the implementation of the findings and recommendations on educational disadvantage contained in the “A Fair Start” report, prepared by an Expert Panel in Northern Ireland and endorsed by the Northern Ireland Executive in 2021. It is a pilot...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Department of Education in Northern Ireland and my Department to deliver this pilot programme of cooperation on addressing educational disadvantage. The Memorandum of Understanding sets out the framework for monitoring and reporting for the oversight and management of these projects, including RAISE, which is to be overseen by an Addressing...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Sacred Heart Junior School, Killinarden. The Department of Education has been made aware of the current situation in relation to the financial position of the school. The Department is committed to offering all available and appropriate supports to the school as quickly as necessary to avoid any further uncertainty. Officials from the Department are in contact with the school and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Gross expenditure incurred by the Department of Education on salaries for teachers and special needs assistants in fee-charging schools was €143m for the 2023/24 school year. The allocation of teachers (in fee-charging schools) is outlined in Circular 0006/2025: Staffing Arrangements in Voluntary Secondary Schools for the 2025/2026 school year. The allocation ratio applicable to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Official Engagements (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: During my recent St Patrick’s Day trip to Australia, my itinerary had a strong educational focus. As well as meeting a number of Irish teachers currently working in Australia, I visited two schools and also engaged with the Ireland Funds Young leaders. I also met the E-Safety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, to discuss our plans to improve online safety for young people, and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Since 2020, my department has invested over €5.8 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 1,300 school building projects. Between projects currently under construction and projects moving to construction in the coming months, investments by the Department of Education are adding over 600,000 square metres of new and modernised capacity to our...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The project to which the Deputy refers is part of a school campus project at Kilbride, Co. Wicklow. It has been devolved for delivery to Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB). The brief for the project includes the provision of a new 16 classroom primary school with a 2 classroom SEN base. The project was authorised by the Department to proceed to Stage 3 (tender...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: My department and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications have developed a jointly funded school sector decarbonisation pathfinder programme. It is administered by the Planning and Building Unit in my Department and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland in partnership with devolved delivery support from Limerick and Clare Education Training Board, and Longford and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Applications relating to the provision of funding for issues relating to an existing school building can fall under a number of different delivery mechanisms including, most frequently, the Summer Works Scheme (SWS) and the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS). The purpose of the EWS is to provide funding specifically for unforeseen emergencies. It does so by ensuring the availability of funding...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school to which the Deputy refers submitted an application for funding under the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS) for a roof works project. The purpose of the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS) is to provide funding specifically for unforeseen emergencies. It does so by ensuring the availability of funding for urgent works to those schools that are in need of resources as a result of an...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The amount of funding provided to Ardscoil La Salle, Dublin 5 by my Department for the years in question was: Period 2025 to date 2024 2023 Amount €132,696.84 €553,127.37 €313,762.08

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Welfare Service (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) is under the remit of my Department. TESS operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. TESS has three strands, namely the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS) and the two school support services; the Home School Community Liaison (HSCL)...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project referred to by the Deputy is at an advanced stage of Architectural planning Stage 4 – Construction. It is estimated that the extension/refurbishment works will be complete in quarter 2, 2025.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: The project to which the Deputy refers is devolved for delivery to Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board (WWETB). The brief for this project comprises of the development of a new purpose-built, 25 classroom school for pupils with special educational needs. The project is currently at Stage 3 (tender stage) of the architectural design process. The Design Team are currently...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Welfare Service (25 Mar 2025)

Helen McEntee: Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) is under the remit of my Department. TESS operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. TESS has three strands, namely the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS) and the two school support services; the Home School Community Liaison (HSCL)...