Results 221-240 of 16,608 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school to which the Deputy refers to was approved to enter the departments pipeline of school building projects under the Additional Schools Accommodation (ASA) Scheme to provide a 4 Classroom SEN base and 2 SET classrooms. The project has been devolved for delivery to the school authority. The Tender Report/Stage 3 report for the project was recently received by my department and is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Schemes (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can advise the Deputy that under ESD to 2030, the 2nd National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development, significant work is underway in my department promoting outdoor education and biodiversity in schools. ESD to 2030 aims to ensure that all learners have the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development (SDG target 4.7). A first progress report on ESD to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: Choices regarding educational materials, textbooks and other educational products, as well as digital and online services, are made by individual schools and their boards of management, not by the Department. In general, it is the current policy of the Department of Education and Youth not to endorse publications, products or services from individual, commercial or other providers. For...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Administration (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: Under the provisions of the Education Act, 1998 the Board of Management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school. Section 64 of the Education (Admissions to schools) Act 2018 explicitly prohibits the charging of admission and enrolment fees for admission to, or for continued enrolment in a school. No mandatory charge or fee may be levied on parents or pupils in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Uniforms (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: Decisions on school uniforms are a matter for individual schools and Boards of Management. My department issued Circular 0032/2017, which sets out the principles of cost-effective practice to be adopted by schools to reduce the cost of returning to school. Under these measures, schools were advised that they should select school uniform items which are generic and can be purchased from a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: This government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective. The school referred to by the Deputy is one of the five new special schools being established for the 2025/26 school year. A former school property is currently being re-purposed...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: It should be noted that under the Education Act, the Boards of Management of Schools have responsibility for the day to day management of schools. Decisions regarding the use and deployment of digital technology in schools is therefore a matter for the Board of Management of each school in the context of their digital learning planning. Schools are advised to consult with members of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy will be delivered under the Department's ADAPT Programme. The ADAPT Programme uses a professional external Programme Manager to co-ordinate and drive the Design Team to achieve the best possible timeframe for the project through the design stages of architectural planning to Tender and Construction. The brief for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Correspondence (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: As the Deputy will be aware, in June 2023 Government approved proposals for the delivery of a package of ongoing supports and services for survivors of abuse in residential institutions, relating to health, education, advocacy and trauma-informed practice. This package of supports was developed following consideration of the final report of the survivor-led Consultative Forum. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Expenditure (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: As requested, details and the current year funding allocated or paid out for Departmental employees for legal study programmes including EU law in the past three years have been provided in tabular form. Twenty eight employees have participated in legal study programmes in the past three years. Eight of these employees were supported under refund or advance payment of fees schemes. Under...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Artificial Intelligence (10 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: My Department continue to review and follow guidance issued by the National Cyber Security Centre, Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, and the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform on the use of Artificial Intelligence. The following details the use of AI technologies within the past 12 months for which no cost has been incurred: A limited trial is underway...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The recommendations of the Report of the Expert Group on Fixed-Term and Part-Time Employment in Teaching established under the Haddington Road Agreement (also known as the Ward Report) allowed fixed-term teachers to acquire permanent positions more easily and quickly and enable part-time teachers to gain additional hours. Specific provisions were made in this report including teachers...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The criteria for the award of incremental credit are set out in the Department’s Circulars 10/2001, for primary teachers, and 29/2007 and 29/2010, for post-primary teachers. The criteria for the award of incremental credit to recognised teachers were agreed under the auspices of the Teachers Conciliation Council (TCC). These circulars may recognise prior teaching or relevant...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 39, 42 and 43 together. This government is fully committed to supporting children with special educational needs to fulfil their full potential and the Programme for Government makes a number of commitments to deliver on this objective. I know the central role that our special needs assistants (SNAs) play in the successful inclusion of students with...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Mental Health Policy (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 40, 41 and 52 together. Arising from Budget 2025, €84.4m has been made available to my department in current and capital funding to support youth services and youth programmes. This includes an increase of €6m in current funding on the 2024 budget. Over the period from 2020 to 2025, the level of current Exchequer funding for youth services...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Youth Services (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: My Department supports 21 youth information centres (YICs) nationally. These centres provide young people with a trusted source of information on rights, opportunities, health, wellbeing, welfare and other matters, and are a means by which they can find their way to more specialised help when they need it. In 2025, my Department allocated €1,512,163 in funding for YICs. One of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The primary staffing schedule is a long-standing feature of the primary allocation system which ensures fairness and transparency in the allocation of mainstream class teachers across our primary schools. It is an important feature of the primary schedule that staffing levels remain aligned with actual student numbers in schools. The staffing appeals process is in place to allow schools the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project at the school referred to by the Deputy is at Architectural Planning Stage 4 – Construction. Department officials are aware that a number of trees were removed from the site, both within the footprint of the new school development and to the rear of the existing school premises. This action was necessary to facilitate the construction of the new...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The primary staffing schedule is a long-standing feature of the primary allocation system which ensures fairness and transparency in the allocation of mainstream class teachers across our primary schools. It is an important feature of the primary schedule that staffing levels remain aligned with actual student numbers in schools. The staffing appeals process is in place to allow schools the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (9 Jul 2025)

Helen McEntee: The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The primary staffing arrangements for the 2025/26 school year are set out in Circular 0011/2025. The staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all similar...