Results 781-800 of 16,182 for speaker:Helen McEntee

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. We agree on a number of things here. We are all working on behalf of the children the Deputy has mentioned. We are all working to make sure we get answers to what has happened here. We have discussed this a number of times in the Chamber. We are all extremely concerned at the thought of a child having a surgery where that was not necessary. We...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school referred to by the Deputy had a large scale capital project delivered in 2024 by my Department. There are contractual arrangements associated with this project which need to be managed by the school. My Department will continue to engage with and advise the school authority in order to support it in opening special education classes in this context. These discussions are actively...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: The project for the school referred to by the Deputy will provide a new 1,000 pupil post-primary school building and accommodation, including 4 classrooms, for children with special educational needs on the permanent site for the school. The project will be delivered under my Department's Design and Build Programme. The decision to grant planning permission for the permanent school was...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Bodies (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Educational Research Centre (ERC) was established on a statutory basis in September 2015. This is the only aegis body established by my Department in the last 10 years. Voted funding to this aegis body in the last 10 years amounts to €32,266,837.53. In 2023, the following 4 support services: Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST); Junior Cycle for Teachers (JCT);...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Public Sector Staff (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 221 and 233 together. Compulsory retirement in the public service is generally determined by the date of recruitment of the individual public servant and, for the most part, is provided for in primary legislation. The Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2004 introduced new superannuation and retirement provisions for new...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can confirm to the Deputy, that my department has recently received an application for capital funding, under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme, from the school in question. The purpose of the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme is to ensure that essential mainstream and special education classroom accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education appropriate to their needs is a priority for this Government. Providing inclusive education to children with special educational needs is a fundamental principle of my Department’s education and training system. This principle is put into practice through the policies of my Department and the Teaching Council...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (15 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: Under the Education Act 1998, the question of enrolment policy in individual schools, including the setting of catchment areas, is the responsibility of the board of management on behalf of the school patron. The selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. However, this may result in some...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (15 May 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 and uses a geographical information system,...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Funding (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: The school to which the Deputy refers submitted an application for funding under the Emergency Works Scheme (EWS) for roof works. The application in question is currently being reviewed by the technical area within the EWS. Once a technical recommendation has been received back from the technical team, the EWS team will engage further with the school as appropriate. The EWS team is aware...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: My department’s main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in the area. Parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available for the relevant year, the student should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Irish Sign Language (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can inform the Deputy that currently there are four modules on Irish Sign Language (ISL) available as part of the Leaving Certificate Applied Programme. This course introduces students to ISL and aims to develop their expressive and receptive communication skills and also develops awareness and appreciation of the Irish deaf community and its culture. The Department wishes to build on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Contracts (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: My department has sourced and procured IT equipment manufactured by, or containing components from, companies on the list the Deputy refers to. This IT equipment includes laptops, desktops, servers and other peripherals manufactured by DELL and Hewlett-Packard, which can contain CPUs and other components made by Intel. In sourcing and procuring equipment from these companies my...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Qualifications (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: The Teaching Council is the professional standards body for the teaching profession, which promotes and regulates professional standards in teaching. At the outset, I confirm that there are entry routes to primary, post-primary and further education teacher education programmes for persons who are deaf and hard of hearing. Currently there are teachers who are deaf and hard of hearing...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Health and Safety (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I propose to take Questions Nos. 87, 88 and 89 together. My Department works together with the Department of Health and other agencies to support students in the area of health. The aim is to equip students with the skills and knowledge to enable them to make the right choices for healthy lifestyles throughout their lives. Schools have a role to play in supporting their students to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: 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 school referred to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: I can assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs is an absolute priority of mine. Since 2020, my Department has invested over €335 million in school infrastructure across County Kildare. The Department is continually planning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Meetings (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: All diary requests are considered by my Office in the Department. The team can be reached by the following email address Ministers_Calendar@education.gov.ie and they can liaise with the organisation in question.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: Under the Assistive Technology Scheme, as set out in my Department’s Circular 0010/2013, funding is provided to schools towards the cost of computers and specialist equipment, which are required for educational purposes. All equipment provided under this scheme supports children with more complex disabilities who, in order to access the school curriculum, require essential...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Obesity Levels (14 May 2025)

Helen McEntee: My Department works together with the Department of Health and other agencies to support students in the area of health promotion. My Department acknowledges the commitment of schools in promoting healthy lifestyle choices for students in a number of ways - through the curriculum, for example Home Economics, Physical Education and Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE); through school...