Results 6,321-6,340 of 19,559 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The Programme for Government includes a commitment to “achieve the target of at least 400 multi-denominational primary schools by 2030, to improve parental choice”. In recent years there has been considerable progress towards increasing the numbers of multi-denominational primary schools. In 2022, there were 166 primary schools with a multi-denominational or...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: As Minister for Education I am very conscious of the need to ensure schools are supported, enabling them to maximise teaching and learning outcomes for all students. My Department provides funding to all recognised schools in the Free Education Scheme by way of per capita grants. These grants are based on recognised enrolments in September of the relevant school year, which is the September...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/23 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% in tickets issued to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Mental Health Services (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The Department of Education is committed to supporting the emotional wellbeing of our children and I was delighted to announce the establishment of a programme of counselling and mental health supports to be piloted in a number of primary schools from September 2023. Strand 1 of the pilot was announced on the 31stof May and Strand 2 on the 22ndof June. Strand 1 will see the provision of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Disadvantaged Status (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: My Department provides a wide range of supports to all schools, DEIS and non-DEIS, to support the inclusion of all students and address barriers to students achieving their potential. Supplementing these universal supports, the DEIS programme provides a targeted and equitable way to address concentrated educational disadvantage that promotes equity and has benefits for students. My...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I am aware that the timing of issue of results is of course an important issue for the further and higher .education sector, in the context of planning for the transition from post-primary to further and higher education. In that regard, my Department, together with the State Examinations Commission and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, met with...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission or the SEC has responsibility for the development, operation and delivery of the State examinations. In accordance with its role, all matters relating to the drafting and setting of examinations and the marking of them fall within its remit. Ensuring integrity and fairness in the examinations is a core part of the SEC’s role. The SEC has advised that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The purpose of my Department’s Additional School Accommodation (ASA) programme is to ensure that essential classroom accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year and where the need cannot be met by the school’s existing accommodation. I can confirm to the Deputy that the school referred to was approved funding under my Department's ASA Scheme and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/2023 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% in tickets issued...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: Ref No: 31566/23 The Inspectorate report, ‘Summer Programme 2022: Perspectives of children and young people, their parents and programme managers’ was published on my Department’s website in April 2023. The report is based on visits conducted by the Inspectorate to a sample of the primary, post-primary and special schools that provided the summer programme. During their...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I believe it is crucially important that all children and young people are actively supported to access education in its fullest forms and I know that I am supported by Government in this belief. Since June 2020, and over the past three Budgets, I have secured funding to support measures aimed at achieving that goal. One of the most important policies in this regard has been the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Renewable Energy Generation (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: Budget 2023 included the announcement for the provision of up to 6kW photovoltaic (PV) panels to all schools, to be funded from the Climate Action Fund at the discretion of the Minister for the Environment. This is really positive news for our schools and will assist with their energy needs and costs along with supporting the decarbonisation of our school buildings. This PV programme will...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: In this the 2022/23 school year, the staffing schedule operates on a general average of 24 pupils to every 1 teacher. This is a historically low level of pupils to teachers. Primary schools also have access to other non-mainstream teachers, including for example special education teachers and language support teachers. Under the Programme for Government, there is a commitment to make further...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/2023 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% in tickets issued to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Disadvantaged Status (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: My Department provides a wide range of supports to all schools, DEIS and non-DEIS, to support the inclusion of all students and address barriers to students achieving their potential. Supplementing these universal supports, the DEIS programme provides a targeted and equitable way to address concentrated educational disadvantage that promotes equity and has benefits for students. My...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I recently announced details of Ireland’s first national primary school book scheme, which will provide free schoolbooks, workbooks and copybooks, in recognised primary schools and special schools. It ensures equity of opportunity in education, where all pupils are supported to fulfil their potential and reflects the importance this Government places on education. The scheme will...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The recruitment of teachers is a priority area of action for the Department given the importance of ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have available to them qualified, engaged, and supportive teachers to support them in their learning. The Department is undertaking a comprehensive programme to support the supply of teachers, including:Primary...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: This information needs to be extracted from the financial management system within My Department and my officials will forward this information directly to the Deputy once this has been completed.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/23 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% in tickets issued to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Equipment (29 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: My Department’s Guidance in relation to managing in a Covid environment set out the practical steps for improving ventilation and where poor ventilation continued to exist in a particular room/area, air cleaners may be considered as an additional measure in conjunction with other methods of ventilation that are available. This was in line with the Expert Group guidance which identified...