Results 641-660 of 15,908 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Facilities (1 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm to the Deputy that my department is in receipt of a request for grant aid for a proposed land acquisition under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) Scheme from the school in question. I am pleased to confirm that approval was given under the Department's Modular Framework for two special education classrooms and six mainstream classrooms and this project was delivered...

Special Education: Motion [Private Members] (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that: — a child's right to education is enshrined in the Constitution and, under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, must be accessible on an equal basis with others in the community in which they live; and — the Government...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Disadvantaged Status (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: Tackling educational disadvantage and supporting students to fulfil their full potential in life is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth and for the Government. The DEIS Programme is a key policy of Government to tackle concentrated educational disadvantage at school level. The DEIS programme provides a targeted range of supports and is additional to the universal...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project at the school referred to by the Deputy is at Architectural Planning Stage 4 - Construction. The project is in the final stage of construction, works on the school building are complete with some external works ongoing.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The project to which the Deputy refers has been devolved for delivery to Cavan and Monaghan Education and Training Board (CMETB). This project is currently at Stage 4 which is the construction stage. It is envisaged that the project will be substantially completed in quarter three 2025 in accordance with the April 2025 Progress report from CMETB. My Department will continue to engage...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project at the school referred to by the Deputy is at Architectural Planning Stage 4 – Construction. The project brief is to provide a new 14 Mainstream Classroom Special School and all ancillary accommodation. The project commenced in April 2024 and works are progressing well on site, it is anticipated that construction will be complete in quarter 1, 2026....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: A major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is currently underway, and will deliver a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school and accommodation, including two classrooms, for children with special educational needs. The project is being delivered in two phases, under my Department's Design and Build. The school commenced operation in the completed Phase 1 of the new...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: Transition Year is a valuable programme for students and under the redevelopment of Senior Cycle programme, it is my ambition that in the future every student who wishes to avail of Transition Year will have the opportunity to do so. This year, over 60,000 students are enrolled in TY programmes representing a record level of participation. Since 2018, the number of students choosing...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school planning areas were developed for use with the department’s Geographic Information System (GIS) in 2008 and with the introduction of small areas in census 2011, these areas were amended to align with census small areas. The current school planning areas take account not only of local groupings of schools, but also of natural boundaries, census small areas and other local...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: Since 2020, my department has invested over €5.9 billion in our schools throughout the country, involving the completion of over 1,350 school building projects. Between projects currently under construction and projects moving to construction in the coming months, investments by the Department of Education are adding over 610,000 square metres of new and modernised capacity to our...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Correspondence (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: While the Deputy will appreciate that I cannot comment on individual or specific cases which are the subject of potential litigation, I can advise that the correspondence in question has been referred to the Chief State Solicitor's Office who I understand will respond in due course.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: Following the implementation of calculated grades in 2020 and the dual approach of examinations and accredited grades in 2021, two types of intervention have been implemented in recent years: adjustments to examination and assessments arrangements, and a post-marking adjustment to outcomes. This post-marking adjustment has ensured that results in the aggregate have remained the same on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The amount of funding that has been provided to schools within Tipperary under the emergency works scheme in the years of 2024, and to date in 2025, totals €5.42 million and is broken down in tabular format below: 2024 €5.16m 2025 €0.26m

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Child Abuse (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Report of the Scoping Inquiry into Historical Sexual Abuse in Day and Boarding Schools Run by Religious Orders recommended the establishment of a Commission of Investigation as its principal recommendation and this has been accepted by Government. The Report of the Scoping Inquiry made a number of further recommendations and a high level Inter-Departmental Group (IDG) was convened to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Ancillary Services Grant is payable to recognised primary schools and special schools in the Free Education Scheme. The grant is intended to cater for the cost of employing Secretarial and Caretaking staff. It is up to the BOM to allocate this funding as per their priorities. As per Circular 0040/2009 (www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/circulars/clarificati...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Qualifications (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: This Government is fully committed to ensuring that every child has a positive school experience, with access to qualified and engaged teachers who are dedicated to supporting their learning. A number of measures to support primary and post-primary schools to recruit teachers have been introduced including a €2,000 bursary-style fee refund for teachers graduating with a Professional...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The large scale capital project for the school referred to by the Deputies is the provision of a new 600 pupil school building including all associated ancillary accommodation. The project was originally authorised to proceed to tender, upon completion of the prequalification shortlisting process in September 2022. Planning Permission was due to expire in December 2022 and it was...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (30 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: I wish to advise the Deputy that requirement for school places is kept under on-going review in the context of available information on population, enrolments and residential development activity. In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, my department divides the country into 314 school planning areas (SPA) and uses a geographical information...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Attendance (29 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) is under the remit of my Department. TESS operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. TESS has three strands namely the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS) and the two school support services the Home School Community Liaison (HSCL)...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Standards (29 Apr 2025)

Helen McEntee: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the state examinations. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.