Results 4,921-4,940 of 13,291 for speaker:Joe McHugh

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I wish to confirm to the Deputy that an application for capital funding, under my Department's Additional School Accommodation Scheme (ASA), has been received from the school in question. Officials from my Department have been liaising with the school authority and are awaiting further information.  On receipt of this information the application will be given further consideration...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Expulsions (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: The issue of the expulsion of pupils from schools is dealt with in the context of Developing a Code of Behaviour: Guidelines for Schools which can be accessed at the following link: . As the Deputy will note, there are very specific procedures to be followed by schools where the expulsion of a pupil becomes an issue. One of the requirements is that the school should notify the Education...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teachers' Remuneration (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: My Department issues salary and pension payments to approximately 120,000 payees per fortnight on four payrolls: primary teachers, post primary teachers, non-teaching staff and retired teachers, spouses and children. The Revenue Commissioners introduced real time PAYE (PAYE modernisation) from 1 January 2019. This was the biggest change to the PAYE system since the 1960s. Under the new...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Technological Universities Status (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: The process for the establishment of additional universities is provided for in Section 9 of the Universities Act 1997. There are currently 8 universities in the State, the most recent being the establishment of Technological University Dublin under the Technological Universities Act 2018 on 1 January 2019. The National Strategy for Higher Education to 2030 states that there is no case for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: As the Deputy will be aware, in April 2018 the Government announced plans for the establishment of 42 new schools over the next four years (2019 to 2022). A patronage process is run after it has been decided, based on demographic analysis, that a new school is required. This patronage process is open to all patron bodies and prospective patrons. Parental preferences for each patron, from...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Funding (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: As the Deputy will be aware, in order to build a political consensus regarding the future funding of higher education on a fiscally sustainable basis, in July 2016 the then Minister for Education and Skills referred the expert group report on future funding of higher education to the Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills. In January 2018 the Committee requested that my Department...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: Voluntary contributions by parents are permissible provided it is made absolutely clear to parents that there is no question of compulsion to pay and that, in making a contribution, they are doing so of their own volition. The manner in which voluntary contributions are sought and collected is a matter for school management, however their collection should be such as not to create a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department issued final grant approval for the provision of three temporary classrooms and toilet block in December 2018, to the school in question, as a devolved project. A devolved project allows individual school authorities the means to address their approved accommodation and building priorities with a guaranteed amount of funding and gives them...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Autism Support Services (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I propose to take Questions Nos. 263, 338 and 339 together. My Department does not hold information in relation to the number of children with a recommendation for ASD specific placements. The National Council for Special education (NCSE), an independent agency of my Department, is responsible for planning, coordinating and advising on education provision for children with special...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that funding has been approved for the provision of an additional mainstream classroom, en-suite toilets, a WC for assisted users and a Special Education Teaching room at the school to which the Deputy refers. The project has been devolved for delivery to the school authority so it is now a matter for the Board of Management to advance the project.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: Officials from my Department have been in discussions and ongoing communication with the school patrons of both the Gaelscoil and the secondary school to which the Deputy refers in relation to the matter of sufficient suitable accommodation for all of the schools on the campus for September 2019. There are two primary schools in permanent buildings on a campus in the area referred to by...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff Appeals Mechanism (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: The criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts is published annually on the Department 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: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: Budget 2012 increased the appointment and retention ratios for small schools, i.e. schools with four classroom teachers or fewer. Since 2015, measures have been introduced to improve the staffing of these schools which has seen improvements in the appointment and retention thresholds for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th classroom teacher and more favourable enrolment thresholds for one teacher...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that my Department has recently sanctioned capital funding, for the provision of a Special Education Needs Base, at the school in question. The School Authority has been notified accordingly.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teachers' Remuneration (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: As a consequence of the economic crisis, there was a need to enact a number of measures to reduce public expenditure so as to stabilise the country's public finances. The last Government approved a number of measures relating to public service allowances following a public service-wide review of allowances and premium payments conducted by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Autism Support Services (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: A major building project to provide permanent accommodation for the school referred to by the Deputy is included in my Department's building programme to be delivered as part of the National Development Plan (NDP) Construction Programme. The building will include a Special Educational Needs Base. The school will be delivered under the Department's Design and Build Programme. This...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I wish to advise the Deputy that DES Circular 0013/2017 for primary schools and 0014/2017 for post primary schools set out details of a new model for allocating special education teachers to schools. DES Circulars 0007/2019 for primary schools and 0008/2019 for post primary schools also provide details of how the allocations are being updated for schools from September 2019, based on updated...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: The project to which the Deputy refers has been devolved for delivery to Mayo, Sligo and Leitrim Education and Training Board (MSLETB). My Department has recently given approval for the project to proceed to Construction Stage. When construction has commenced, the ETB will submit the requisite drawdown requirements to the Building Unit. The relevant officials in my Department, once they...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Applications Data (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: I propose to take Questions Nos. 273 and 274 together. In the assessment of means, a deduction can be made for “Holiday Earnings” earned by the applicant from employment outside of term time but within the reference period for the assessment of income for student grant purposes. The value of the Holiday Earnings income disregard was increased from €3,809 to €4,500...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Reform (8 May 2019)

Joe McHugh: The assessment of means under the Student Grant Scheme is based on gross income from all sources, with certain social welfare and health service executive payments being exempt. In the assessment of means, a deduction can be made for “Holiday Earnings” earned by the applicant from employment outside of term time but within the reference period for the assessment of income for...