Results 8,201-8,220 of 45,495 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: Inclusion is one of the core strategic goals for my Department. My ambition is to ensure that we provide supports and opportunities for learning to all. This means recognising the needs of vulnerable learners, the most marginalised and those with special and additional needs. The vision of the Third National Plan for Equity of Access to Higher Education 2015-2021 (NAP) is that the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The National Development Plan (NDP) provides for a step up in capital funding and a significantly more ambitious phase of capital investment in the FET sector. My Department, in conjunction with SOLAS, is undertaking significant planning work to build up the governance, strategic framework and delivery capability required to underpin and support this major programme of FET investment. I...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: A Devolved Capital Grant is provided to the higher and further education sectors with an allocation of just over €48m in 2021 (€40m higher education and just over €8m FET). The purpose of the Devolved Capital Grant is to provide flexible capital funding to eligible higher education institutions and ETBs to support small-scale building works and equipment purchase or...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: My Department is strongly committed to supporting the health of the population through the provision of graduates with the key competencies and skills to be effective in the health workforce, and support a range of clinical teams in our health services. My Department already contributes significantly towards the fees for undergraduate degrees. Under my Department’s free fees...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: I am happy to give an update on the review of the Student Grant Scheme. This was a very important commitment in the Programme for Government, which will help shape decision-making on how we support students over the years to come. Following a procurement process, the review was undertaken by Indecon Economic Consultants, under the guidance of a steering group which included student and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: In December, a number of issues in relation to immigration and visa permissions were brought to the Department’s attention via our higher education institutions. As this falls within the remit of the Department of Justice, this was referred to that Department for action. On 17 December 2021, the Minister for Justice announced a further temporary extension of immigration and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: My Department's primary source of statistics is the HEA's Student Records System (SRS) which records enrolments of students, rather than planned places. First year enrolment data for occupational therapy, and speech and language therapy courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate level is available in the following table. The data is for the 2020/21 academic year, the latest available. ...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The Central Applications Office (CAO) is a not-for-profit company created by the Irish higher education institutions, who have delegated to the CAO the task of centrally processing Irish and EU applications for their undergraduate, and some postgraduate, courses. The higher education institutions retain decision-making powers in relation to admissions, and instruct the CAO to make offers to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The Student Grant Scheme, administered by SUSI, provides grant assistance to students pursuing an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding, including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. It assists over 70,000 students annually to access third level education. The eligibility criteria for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: From enquiries made by my officials with SOLAS, I understand that 375 bus drivers and 432 Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) Drivers successfully completed their training programmes throughout the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) in 2021 and that a further 69 bus drivers and 175 HGV drivers commenced training programmes in 2021 which are ongoing. A breakdown of the numbers on a county basis is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Contracts (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The information sought by the Deputy in regard to the bodies under the aegis of my Department is being collated. The Department will supply this information to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 503 and 511 together. The independent expert panel commissioned by SOLAS in late 2019 to review the funding model for Further Education and Training (FET) have undertaken extensive research, consulted with a wide range of stakeholders, and tested funding ideas and approaches via a series of workshops with ETBs. Although the process has been delayed by COVID...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: Tackling sexual violence and harassment in our tertiary education system is and will remain, a key policy focus for me and my Department. I really want to thank students and staff across the country who took the time to engage with this survey and share their experiences with us. A total of 11,417 responses were analysed (7,901 students and 3,516 staff) and inform the findings. The survey...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: I am very conscious of the challenges faced by students in relation to student accommodation, and my Department and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are working closely together to address these issues. This remains very much a priority for my Department. The Government has taken measures to address affordability and rent increases. Rent increases in student...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Disability Services (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The matter of health workforce planning and ensuring an appropriate pipeline of qualified healthcare workers within Ireland, is a major priority for my Department. The Programme for Government commits the Department of Health to working with the education sectors, regulators, and professional bodies to improve the availability of health professionals and reform their training to support...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: In 2021, a record 8,607 new apprentices were registered in the apprenticeship system. This is an increase of over 38% in comparison to 2020. In the Construction Sector, registrations grew 38% from 4,377 in 2020 to 7,095 in 2021. Partly attributing to the success of the growth in apprenticeships is the Apprenticeship Incentivisation Scheme. The Scheme was established to ensure that...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: There are a number of key strategies in place to ensure that our educational provision in the tertiary sector meets the existing and future skills demands of the fast-evolving jobs market. Central to shaping these strategies is the partnership approach between the Further and Higher Education system and Government, Industry, the National Skills Council, the National Training Fund Advisory...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Official Travel (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: The Government has agreed the programme to mark St Patrick’s Day around the world. This will include a programme of visits by Ministers. This will be announced by the Department of Foreign Affairs shortly.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: A total of 6,955 craft apprentices were registered in 2021. 298 apprentices withdrew from their apprenticeships, 2 were made redundant and 194 are classed as unemployed. Apprentices end their registration for a variety of reasons including failed assessments, pursuing another career or educational programme or personal reasons such as serious illness etc. If they are made redundant and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Feb 2022)

Simon Harris: Craft apprenticeships account for 25 of the 62 existing available apprenticeship programmes. They comprise of a standard seven phase programme of alternating on-the-job and off-the-job phases. The off-the-job training for these programmes is delivered in Training Centres, Institutes of Technology and Technological Universities SOLAS have provided certification data per year for craft...