Results 6,421-6,440 of 19,559 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (28 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 current school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are 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: Special Educational Needs (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I can confirm to the Deputy that my Department is in receipt of an application for the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme from the school in question. The purpose of my Department's Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme is to ensure that essential mainstream and special education classroom accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year and where the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I can confirm to the Deputy, that my Department is in receipt of an application for the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme from the school in question. My Department's Planning and Building Unit is currently assessing its work programme and priorities for 2023 in the context of its available funding. Key priorities for the Department's work programme include continuing strong...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Schemes (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: My Department and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications have developed a jointly funded school sector decarbonisation pathfinder programme. It is administered by the Planning and Building Unit in my Department and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland in partnership with devolved delivery support from Limerick and Clare Education Training Board. This Pathfinder...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I am pleased to advise the Deputy that the modular project, at the school referred to, is progressing and a request for funding has been processed. The school authorities can expect to receive funds in their bank account in 7 - 10 business days.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The purpose of the Remote Area Boarding Grant scheme is to give students who are disadvantaged because of their remoteness from schools an opportunity to attend school on the same basis as students not so disadvantaged. The terms of this scheme are set out in Circular 16/2016 which is published on my Department’s website at: gov.ie - Remote Area Boarding Grant scheme () As per the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Circulars (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: Circular 0032/2017 sets out the principles of cost-effective practice to be adopted by schools to reduce the cost of returning to school, and has been issued to the Boards of Management of all recognised primary and post-primary schools and to the Chief Executives of the Education and Training Boards. Under these measures, schools should select school uniform items which are generic and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: As Minister for Education I believe it is crucially important that children and young people are actively supported to access education in its fullest forms. This Government recognises that the cost of preparing children for school each September can be a cause of financial difficulty and worry for many Irish families. I am keenly aware of the challenges faced by educators and parents,...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (28 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The Department of Education prepares education expenditure data on an annual basis for the OECD publication 'Education at a Glance'. The most recent year for which expenditure per student data at primary and secondary level is available is 2019. Dataset: Educational Finance Indicators Indicator FIN PERSTUD: Total 2019 T: All INST_T: T: All...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 282 and 329 together. Guidance counselling in post primary schools is holistic and may include personal counselling, educational counselling, career counselling or combinations of these. It is a key part of the school guidance programme, offered on an individual or group basis as part of a developmental learning process and at moments of personal crisis. It...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that in order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a Geographical Information System, using data from a range of sources, including Child Benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that in order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a Geographical Information System, using data from a range of sources, including Child Benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: My Department is currently planning to install modular accommodation for the school on the site to which the Deputy refers. There are also contingency measures being looked into as the interim accommodation will not be ready in time for the start of the upcoming academic year, due to time constraints. One contingency option is that the school may be split over two locations, which should be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The Emergency Works applications to which the Deputy refers have been assessed by my Department and I wish to advise the Minister that approval for these works has been granted. An email has been sent to the school in this regard advising it of same.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: In respect of the pilot area to which the Deputy refers, the facilitator prepared a preliminary report with a recommendation, based on engagement with stakeholders, including school staff and parents on whether there is sufficient demand for transfer of patronage and change of ethos or whether the school community wishes to remain under the patronage of the Catholic Church, and submitted this...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: 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 process contains an appeals mechanism for schools to submit a staffing appeal under certain criteria to an independent Primary Staffing Appeals Board. The appeal submitted by...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Maternity Leave (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: Leave entitlements for public servants, including teachers, are determined by the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform. Under Section 24 of the Education Act 1998, the Minister for Education, with the concurrence of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, is authorised to determine the terms and conditions...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: I am pleased to inform the deputy that the school in question was approved funding under the Department’s Additional School Accommodation (ASA) Scheme for the provision of a four classroom Special Education Needs unit as an extension to the existing school building, secure hard & soft play areas, a sensory garden and associated works to the school car park. As the Deputy...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (27 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: Schools Administration (27 Jun 2023)

Norma Foley: The Department of Education does not hold individual pupil attendance records at Primary or Post Primary School Level. Pupil attendance records are the responsibility of the individual school(s). All school records and data must be maintained and processed in compliance with the GDPR and the Data Protection Acts. The responsibility for compliance with the legislation rests with each...