Results 3,121-3,140 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. Thereafter, schools are required under the panel arrangements to fill permanent vacancies from supplementary panels comprised of eligible fixed-term (temporary/substitute) and part-time teachers. Preparation for the staffing and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. The redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers is key to the Department's ability to manage within its payroll budget and ceiling on teacher numbers. Thereafter, schools are required under the panel arrangements to fill permanent...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. Thereafter, schools are required under the panel arrangements to fill permanent vacancies from supplementary panels comprised of eligible fixed-term (temporary/substitute) and part-time teachers. Preparation for the staffing and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that the application to which he refers is currently being considered by my officials and a decision will issue before the mid-term break. Under the terms of the Home Tuition scheme, children who have a diagnosis of autism in accordance with the prescribed criteria and who are aged between 2.5 years and 3 years qualify for 10 hours home tuition as they cannot...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm to the Deputy that the school referred to has made an application to my Department for significant capital funding for refurbishment works. In view of the need to ensure that our school system is in a position to cope with increasing pupil numbers, the delivery of new schools, together with extension projects, are being prioritised in the 5 Year Plan to meet significant...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is in regular communication with the school to which he refers regarding the school's accommodation needs. I am pleased to confirm to the Deputy that my Department has approved additional temporary accommodation for September 2013 to accommodate the school's increasing enrolments. In respect of the school's longer term needs, I understand that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy may be aware, two new post-primary schools (in Doughiska and Claregalway) opened in September 2013, both of which are multi-denominational in ethos. These new schools were established in order to provide sufficient places for the increased numbers of post-primary pupils within the general area. The Forward Planning Section of my Department will continue to analyse demographic...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Youth Services Provision (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department provides funding of some €4million across a number of projects and centres that engage with and retain children in ongoing education. Facilities supported by my Department include: Youth Encounter Projects, established in the 1970s as non-residential facilities for children at risk of coming into conflict with authority or are at serious risk of dropping out of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that funding for these works has been approved by my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Management (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that under the provisions of the Education Act 1998 the Board of Management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school. It is important that the school management authority requests parents to ensure that the school is made aware of any medical condition suffered by any pupil attending. Where the school is aware of potential difficulties that may...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including the allocation of resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools. The NCSE operates within my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Management (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 73 and 74 together. Section 15 of the Education Act, 1998 requires the Board of Management, in carrying out its functions, to have regard to the efficient use of resources, and in particular, the efficient use of state funds. Boards of primary schools therefore have a statutory duty to ensure that appropriate systems and procedures are in place to ensure...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Broadband Services Provision (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: Under the Schools Broadband Access Programme the Department provides for the supply of internet connectivity for all recognised primary schools. All contracts under the Schools Broadband Access Programme were re-tendered last year under a public procurement competition. As a result of this the number of service providers has been expanded from 6 to 13 with the aim of ensuring that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions Redress Scheme (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: Section 24 of the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act, 2012 provides that the Redress Board can furnish the RISF with the name, address and date of birth of recipients of awards. The Act stipulates that the information can only be used by the RISF to determine a person's eligibility to make an application to the Board. I understand that the RISF has been furnished with this...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Freedom of Information Remit (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: Schools are not currently covered by the Freedom of Information Acts. All Board minutes and other school records and data must be maintained in compliance with relevant data protection legislation. The responsibility for compliance with data protection legislation rests with each individual school.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on the Department's website. 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 staffing schedule operates in a clear and transparent manner and treats all...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 80 and 81together. Educational book publishers are independent private companies not under the direct control of the Department. I have no powers to regulate the textbook market, as suggested by the Deputy. Apart from a small number of prescribed texts at second-level, mainly in the case of language subjects, decisions on textbooks are taken at school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Charges (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take questions 82, 87 and 88 together. As the Deputies will be aware, the Student Contribution stands at €2,500 for the current academic year and is payable by students who qualify under my Department's free fees schemes. I have already signalled my intention to increase the Student Contribution by €250 each year hereafter until the 2015/16 academic year when the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including the allocation of resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools. The NCSE operates within my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (15 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that where a school authority can clearly demonstrate that the planning permission process is delaying their project my Department will grant an extension of time provided the school authority is making every effort to address the issues delaying the granting of planning permission.