Results 7,061-7,080 of 17,531 for speaker:Jan O'Sullivan

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Meetings (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 561 and 562 together. My Department has a Management Advisory Committee (MAC) and a Ministerial MAC (MINMAC). The MAC, which meets on a weekly basis, is chaired by the Secretary General and is attended by the Department's Deputy Secretary, Assistant Secretaries, Chief Inspector and Director. Senior officials also attend as required. I am the chair of all...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Redeployment (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Circular letter 12/03 issued by my Department outlines the temporary exchange scheme for primary teachers. The teacher exchange scheme provides a facility for primary teachers to voluntarily exchange with a teacher in another school. The minimum period for which an exchange may occur is one year and the maximum is five years. The exchange scheme was agreed under the auspices of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Applications (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As the Deputy is aware, planning permission for the school in question was refused by Kildare County Council and this decision was upheld by An Bord Pleanala. My Department is actively engaged with Kildare County Council in working towards a solution for the provision of the new school building. In advance of this, the school will be housed in temporary accommodation from September 2015....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Textbooks Rental Scheme (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Since 2011, my Department has gathered information from primary schools as to whether they operate book rental schemes. Returns for September 2013 indicate that 84% of primary schools operate a book rental scheme. This compares to 83% in 2012 and 77% in 2011. The position at second level is that for September 2013, 68% of schools reported that they operate book rental schemes. A more...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Ministerial Travel (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: At this stage, there are currently no overseas trips planned between now and the end of 2015 for either myself or Minister of State, Damien English T.D. However during the course of the year there will be three meetings of the Education Council which will require Ministerial attendance. These generally occur in February, May and December but the details have yet to be circulated by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Programme for Government Implementation (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The timeline for delivery of the Programme for Government commitments is over the lifetime of this Government. To date, the Government has published three annual progress reports, which set out the progress in implementing an extensive number of commitments. With regard to the commitments relating to my Department, the attached table shows the progress made on each. As will be seen from the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The major building project referred to by the Deputy is at an early stage of Architectural Planning. Following a recent Pre Stage 1 meeting, which was held in November 2014, the Boards of Management and their Design Team are working on finalising the stage 1 report for submission to my Department. Upon satisfactory completion of stage 1 and subject to no issues arising the project will be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing Appeals Mechanism (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: An appeals process is available to small schools affected by the 2012 budget change. The appeal mechanism has been made available to all types of small school and this mechanism has been based on objective enrolment data. A school with four classroom teachers or less which is losing a teacher or failed to gain an additional teacher as a result of the Budget 2012 measures can submit an appeal...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department met with the school Patron and school authority earlier this year to discuss the matter of 1st year pupil enrolments. The Patron and school authority agreed to monitor enrolments to stay within the planned capacity of the new school building which, when completed, will cater for 1,000 pupils. Given that the school will offer a transition year in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. 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 arrangements provide for a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Applications (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Eligibility (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Eligibility (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I wish to advise the Deputy also that the policy of my Department is to secure the maximum possible level of inclusion of students with special educational needs in mainstream primary and post-primary schools, in order to ensure that as many children as possible can be educated with their peers within their own community, regardless of their domiciliary status. My Department provides for a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Payments (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Eligibility (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The changes to the eligibility criteria for the student grant scheme for the academic years 2013/14 and 2014/15 are outlined below. 2013 Student Grant Scheme for the 2013/14 academic year The changes to the eligibility criteria are summarised as follows: - Budget 2013 provided for a 3% reduction in the income thresholds used when calculating entitlement to student grants in the 2013 grant...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: As the Deputy is aware, my Department's over-riding objective is to ensure that every child has access to a physical school place and that our school system is in a position to cope with increasing pupil numbers. This can necessitate the use of temporary accommodation, as in the case in the school referred to by the Deputy, until my Department is in a position to provide a permanent building....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: An Fhoireann Rannach (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Mar a cuireadh in iúl don Teachta le déanaí, léiríodh trí shuirbhé a rinneadh ar fhoireann riaracháin mo Roinne in 2013 go bhfuil inniúlacht sa Ghaeilge ag tuairim is 10% den bhfoireann. Chuir 1.5% den bhfoireann riaracháin in iúl go raibh ardleibhéal inniúlachta sa Ghaeilge acu agus chuir 8.7% den bhfoireann in iúl go...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Vocational Education Committees Expenditure (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The accounts of VECs, including Co Cork VEC, are audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General and I understand that the 2011 accounts of Co Cork VEC will be completed in the near future. Once finalised, officials of my Department will arrange for them to be laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas at the earliest opportunity.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (16 Dec 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The school to which the Deputy refers is to be delivered as part of the Schools Bundle 5 PPP project. This bundle comprises one primary school, four post primary schools and one Institute of Further Education. The site acquisition process for the school in question is underway, however, due to commercial sensitivities associated with property acquisitions generally, I am unable to provide...