Results 11,401-11,420 of 20,049 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The level of Special Education resources provided to schools to support students with special education needs (SEN) is at unprecedented levels. Special Education Teachers (SETs) Budget 2022 provides for an additional 620 new SET posts in special education. This new investment is required to meet the needs of students with special educational needs enrolled in mainstream classes; students...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: Following an extensive site identification, assessment and negotiation process, agreement in principle, subject to contract, has been reached for the acquisition, by my Department, of a permanent school site at the location referred to by the Deputy. This site will accommodate a new 1,000 pupil school plus 4 classroom special education needs unit as a replacement and expansion of the existing...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that school sites are reserved for the purpose of primary and post primary school requirements. My Department does not have a role in making provision for public swimming pools.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: Agreement in principle has been reached to acquire a site for the school referred to by the Deputy. Contracts for sale for the site have been signed, conditional on the landowner providing required infrastructure upgrades to serve the site. My Department has been advised that these upgrades are programmed to be completed by the end of July 2022. The project to provide the permanent...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: School Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 121,400 children, including over 15,500 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €289m in 2021. The purpose of my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: I can confirm to the Deputy, that my Department has recently received an application under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme, from the school authority in question. The purpose of the ASA scheme is to ensure that essential mainstream classroom and Special Education Needs (SEN) accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year, where the need cannot be met by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Administration (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The Department provides a payroll service to primary, post-primary, non-teaching and retired staff and this service is managed by the Department’s Payroll Division in Athlone. The payroll system is an electronic system and a number of processes are already highly automated. For instance, the submission of claims by schools for payment through the Online Claims System (OLCS). The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: 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. For the 2022/23 school year, the staffing schedule for primary schools has been improved by one point and Junior DEIS Band 1 schools such as the one referred to by the Deputy will be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: I can confirm to the Deputy, that my Department has recently received an application under the Additional School Accommodation (ASA) scheme from the school authority in question. The purpose of the ASA scheme is to ensure that essential mainstream classroom and Special Education Needs (SEN) accommodation is available to cater for pupils enrolled each year, where the need cannot be met by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Scoileanna DEIS (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: My Department is committed to ensuring that all schools are treated equally and fairly in the manner in which they have been identified for inclusion in the DEIS programme and all appeals which were submitted to my Department are currently being processed. Circular 0019/2022 – DEIS Identification 2022: Appeals process for schools sets out the appeals process. An appeal has...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The major building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is at an advanced stage of Architectural Planning, Stage 2(b) - Detailed Design. This project is included in my Department’s Construction Programme which is being delivered under the National Development Plan (NDP) as part of Project Ireland 2040 framework. The Stage 2(b) report has been reviewed by my Department and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: I wish to advise the Deputy that 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, using data from a range of sources, including Child Benefit and school enrolment data, to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The Framework for Junior Cycle (2015) provides the underpinning for the Junior Cycle. The Framework gives students the opportunity to develop a wide range of knowledge and skills – to equip them for further learning, for work, for responsible and active citizenship, and for healthy living. The Junior Cycle has been developed and implemented over several years, with the final phase of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: Under Article 44 of the Constitution and in accordance with Section 30 of the Education Act, 1998, parents have a right to have their children opt out of religious instruction classes if they so wish. It is expected that this right will be upheld by schools on foot of a parental request. Under the provisions of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, where schools provide...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy may be aware the Department establishes and supports new schools, including post-primary schools, where a demographic need for a new school has been identified. Where demographic data indicates that additional provision is required, the delivery of such additional provision is dependent on the particular circumstances of each case and may, depending on the circumstances, be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Patronage (25 May 2022)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy will be aware I recently announced that arrangements are being put in place in a number of towns and areas of cities that have no multi-denominational primary schools to identify potential schools and to engage with school authorities, school staff and the school communities with a view to agreeing on a transfer of patronage and change of ethos, where there is sufficient demand...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Websites (24 May 2022)

Norma Foley: It is the aim of my Department that every child has access to equitable education and that each learner irrespective of background feels safe and happy in the school environment, at every stage. I acknowledge that much of the language in the document referred to by the Deputy – the Rules for National Schools which was published in 1965 is outdated, unacceptable and does not reflect...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Schemes (24 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The Summer Works Scheme operates on a multi-annual basis to enable planned upgrading works to be undertaken at schools including in respect of windows. The bulk of the categories of works on the existing multi-annual scheme have been approved.  The next opportunity for the school to apply will be when a new multi-annual summer works scheme is announced and opened for new...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (24 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The decisions made, and which I announced in February, regarding the assessment arrangements and overall grade outcomes for Leaving Certificate 2022 reflect the disruption to their learning that has been experienced by this year’s Leaving Certificate students over the past two years, including periods of school closures whilst those students were in the Senior Cycle, as a result of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Tax Rebates (24 May 2022)

Norma Foley: The provision of the Value Added Tax (VAT) Compensation Scheme which was introduced in Budget 2018 aims to reduce the VAT burden on charities and to partially compensate for VAT paid by the charity. The eligibility criteria for this scheme is a matter for my colleague the Minister for Finance. However, I can confirm that as registered charities, schools that are registered with Revenue and...