Results 701-720 of 14,576 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn in 'Written Answers'

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Scholarship Schemes (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Scholarship provision was reviewed by my Department in advance of the changes announced in Budget 2012 when five higher education scholarship schemes were replaced with a single new scheme of bursaries awarded on criteria based both on merit and on socio-economic need. The bursary represents an additional support and incentive to recognise high achievement for students who are from...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Eligibility (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The current qualifying distance for the higher non-adjacent rate of student grant, at 45 km, takes into account a reasonable radius within which students may commute on a daily basis. I have not made any changes to the qualifying distance in the 2014 scheme. As the Deputy will be aware, the funding allocation for student grants for future years will be determined in the context of the overall...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: National Office for Equity of Access to Higher Education (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The table shows the funding allocated to the National Office for Equity of Access to Higher Education for the past eight years. The allocation includes programme funding for the Fund for Students with Disabilities, the Student assistance Fund and provision for staffing and administrative costs of the National Access Office. Allocation to National Office for Equity of Access for Higher...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Agencies Staff Data (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The table shows level of staffing and rates of pay allocated to the National Office for Equity of Access to Higher Education for the past eight years. The staff allocated for the National Office for Equity of Access to Higher Education also worked on the Higher Education Authority Skills programmes from 2011. Year Grade Number Salary Band at 1st December Salary Scale date 2013 PO APO...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Redeployment (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. The redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers is key to the Department's ability to manage within its payroll budget and ceiling on teacher numbers. Thereafter, schools are required under the panel arrangements to fill permanent...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Parking Provision (8 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is not in receipt of any application or proposal from the school in question but the school authorities can contact my Department should they wish to discuss the matter further. I also wish to advise the Deputy that any application received will be considered in the context of competing demands on my Departments capital budget, the main priority...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Home Tuition Scheme Funding (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy will be aware that the purpose of the Home Tuition Scheme is to provide a compensatory educational service for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school. The scheme also provides a compensatory educational service for children awaiting a suitable educational placement and for early intervention for children with autism....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards Establishment (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Section 30 (1) of the Education and Training Boards Act 2013 provides for the composition of each Board, following the forthcoming local authority elections, as follows: 12 members elected by the relevant local authority or local authorities; 2 education and training board staff members elected by staff members; 2 members appointed by the Board from nominees of the National Parents' Council;...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Redeployment (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary and post-primary schools, including redeployment arrangements, are published annually. The staffing and redeployment arrangements for the 2014/15 school year are available on the Department website. Teaching vacancies are filled in the first instance through the redeployment of surplus permanent teachers. The redeployment of all...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I wish to advise the Deputy that, in December 2013, this Government agreed to increase the cap on the number of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts available for allocation to schools by 390 posts to 10,965 at the end of 2014. These extra posts will ensure that the Government's policy of ensuring that every child who is assessed as needing SNA support will receive access to such support. ...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Legal Case Numbers (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: In 2013 legal proceedings commenced against my Department in respect of six children with Special Education Needs. Four of these cases are still pending. I can confirm that none of these proceedings related to the provision of Special Needs Assistant support. The National Counsel for Special Education (NCSE) through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Universal Support Ireland Administration (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: According to figures provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) the number of students (both new and renewal) who were awarded a grant on the 2nd February 2014 was 57,456. The total number of students who were paid a grant at this date (including a fees only grant) was 56,655. Comparable figures provided by SUSI for 27th April 2014 was 59,440 students awarded all of which were paid.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Traveller Education (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The principle of inclusion is at the core of the Report and Recommendations for a Traveller Education Strategy published in 2006 and, accordingly, the focus of both current and future provision is on the development of a more inclusive school environment. In keeping with this principle, additional resources provided in the education system are allocated on the basis of identified individual...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Higher Education Institutions Staff (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 54 and 67 together. The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the attached table. I ask the Deputy to note that the numbers of positions for the years requested include mainstream posts funded from the Core Grant, undergraduate tuition fees (including grant in lieu of fees), Student Services Charge and the Student Contribution introduced in 2011...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Public Sector Staff Issues (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: The Employment Control Framework ceiling on staff numbers in the education sector for 2014 is 96,135 posts (whole time equivalent). This includes Civil Service posts and posts in a number of education bodies categorised as non-commercial state agencies.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: When the moratorium on the filling of posts of responsibility was introduced the Government exempted Principal and Deputy Principal posts in all primary and post-primary schools and these posts continue to be replaced in the normal manner. At the time of the introduction of the moratorium circa 56% of teachers at post primary level had posts of responsibility. This has since reduced to about...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Training Provision (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Recommendations for changes to initial teacher education were included in the National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020. These recommendations are reflected in the Teaching Council's Policy Paper on the Continuum of Teacher Education and Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers (2011). Improvements which have been made to initial...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Project Maths was the title given to a major programme of reform of mathematics in second level schools for both junior cycle and senior cycle. Project Maths began in 24 schools in September 2008 and was rolled out, on a phased basis, to all mainstream second level schools from September 2010. As of September 2012. "Project Maths" as it has become known, was fully rolled out to all mainstream...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: It is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. In this regard a Board of Management may find it necessary to restrict enrolment to children from a particular area or a particular age group or on the basis of some other criterion. The criteria to be applied by schools in such circumstances are a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (7 May 2014)

Ruairi Quinn: Three primary schools are expected to open this September under the patronage divesting process, with Educate Together as patron. While permanent buildings are not yet available for these schools, I have given the go-ahead for them in temporary start-up accommodation in order to meet parental demand for greater choice of primary schools as soon as possible. The transfer of a Church of...