Results 16,061-16,080 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Summer Works Scheme Applications (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is in receipt of a Category 6 application for roof works under the Summer Works Scheme (2016-2017) from the school to which he refers. Valid SWS (2016-2017) applications from schools in respect of Categories 3 to 10 that were not reached under round one approvals announced on 28th April last, will, subject to the overall availability of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: In identifying the requirement for additional school places, my Department uses a Geographical Information System to identify the areas under increased demographic pressure nationwide. The system uses data from the Central Statistics Office, Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Department of Social Protection and information from my Department's own databases. With this information, my Department...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 135 and 137 together. The NCSE, through its network of locally based Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) allocates Special Needs Assistant (SNA) and Low Incidence Resource Teaching Hours support to schools for children with special educational needs (SEN) arising from a disability. Resource hours are an additional teaching resource allocated...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy will be aware that a major building project for the school to which he refers was included on the 6-year Construction Programme announced last November. The project is being progressed with a view to proceeding to tender and construction stages in 2018, as outlined in the programme. The architectural planning process for the project has commenced and in this regard, my Department...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I wish to advise the Deputy that the school in question contacted my Department in March 2015 regarding its accommodation. My Department subsequently provided the school with an application form. To date, my Department has no record of receiving a completed application form and a further communication issued to the school. Any application received will be assessed in the context of current...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Physical Education Facilities (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy will be aware that my Department's priority is to ensure that each child will have access to a physical school place. In October 2015, my Department advised the school in question that its application for a PE hall could not be grant-aided due to the need to prioritise the limited funding available for essential classroom accommodation to meet demographic demand. The school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The school to which the Deputy refers was allocated funding to build a standalone extension to include a mainstream classroom, resource rooms and circulation area. I can confirm to the Deputy that the school authority applied to my Department for additional funding for the project. My Department subsequently sought further information from the school in respect of this application. To...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: As the Deputy will be aware, a major programme of capital investment in schools was announced in November 2015. The establishment of nine new post-primary schools, including two new post primary schools for the areas referred to by the Deputy, were included in the announcement. The two new schools in question will be established in September 2017 in order to meet increasing demographic...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I can confirm to the Deputy that the school in question has applied to my Department for major capital works. In that context, a technical site visit will be undertaken by officials from my Department, which will assist with the assessment of the application. In that regard, my Department will be in contact with the school authority shortly for purposes of arranging the technical visit.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I wish to inform the Deputy that my Department has been in contact with the school to which he refers, seeking additional details relating to the application. The school has indicated that the information will be provided. Once this information has been received, the application will be considered further and a decision will be conveyed directly to the school authority.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I can confirm that the school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application to my Department, earlier this month, for works to facilitate the amalgamation approved recently to proceed from 1st September 2016. The application is currently under consideration and my Department will be in direct contact with the school when a decision is made.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Staff Recruitment (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: Not all of the information sought by the Deputy is available in my Department. Officials of my Department have requested the Higher Education Authority to collate the information and I will arrange for it to be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it is available.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is awaiting receipt of the information referred to in Parliamentary Question Number 183 of 8 June 2016 from the school. I understand that the school recently advised my Department that it is currently addressing the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Programme for Government has a commitment to reduce class sizes at primary level. Budget 2016 provides for a one point adjustment to the staffing allocation to primary schools, which will be implemented for the 2016/17 school year. This will see the primary staffing schedule operate on the basis of a general average of 1 classroom teacher for every 27 pupils. Lower thresholds apply for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: Teacher allocations to all second level schools are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. The criteria for the allocation of posts are communicated to school managements annually and are available on my Department's website. Each one point adjustment to the pupil teacher ratio (ptr) at post-primary level is estimated...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Programme for Government has a commitment to reduce class sizes at primary level and to commencing a review within three months of teacher appointment thresholds in small schools with four teachers or less. The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. The key factor for determining...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Capitation Grants (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: In the period 2011 to 2015 the capitation and related grants for primary schools were reduced by just over 11% in aggregate. The estimated cost of restoring capitation and related grants to primary schools to pre -2011 levels would be circa €21m. Each 1% increase in capitation and related grants for primary schools would cost approx. €1.9m. and therefore a 10% increase would...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy will be aware that Budget 2016 made provision for some 2,260 additional teaching posts for our primary and post primary schools next year. These posts will provide for an improvement in the staffing schedules at primary and post primary levels, enhance the leadership and management roles of deputy principals at post-primary level by reducing their teaching time, an improvement to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Psychological Services (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: I can inform the Deputy that my Department's National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides educational psychology service to all primary and post primary schools through an assigned NEPS psychologist and in some cases through the Scheme for Commissioning Psychological Assessments (SCPA), full details of which are on the Department's website. Under this scheme schools can have an...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Data (20 Jul 2016)

Richard Bruton: Spending on provision for children with Special Educational Needs has been prioritised in recent years, despite the enormous pressures on all public spending. Funding for special education provision in 2016 will amount to some €1.4 billion, which is equivalent to approximately 17% of the gross overall current allocation for education and training. It has increased by 10% in the past...