Results 12,541-12,560 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Staff in my Department who do not wish to decentralise to Athlone or Mullingar have the option of either applying under the Central Applications Facility to decentralise to another Department or Office or to apply under the Dublin Arrangements to transfer to a vacancy in a Department or Office remaining in Dublin. In 2005, my Department's Decentralisation Committee had a series of meetings...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Teacher allocations to second level schools are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. Each school management authority is required to organise its timetable and subject options having regard to pupils' needs within the limit of its approved teacher allocation. The rules for allocating teaching resources provide that if a...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I can confirm to the Deputy that the Department is in receipt of an application for major capital funding from the school to which the Deputy refers. The application has been assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria for large scale projects and has been assigned a Band 2 rating. Progress on the proposed works is being considered in the context of the School Building...

Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 289 and 290 together. The school to which the Deputy refers commenced operation in September 2002 with provisional recognition from the Department on the basis that it would be providing multi-denominational education in the Clontarf/Marino/Fairview area of Dublin. It is a condition of recognition that the Patron must provide suitable accommodation in the...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I can confirm to the Deputy that the Department is in receipt of an application for major capital works from the management authority of the school to which the Deputy refers. The application has been assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria for large scale projects and has been assigned a Band 2 rating. The long term projected enrolment, which will determine the...

Written Answers — Home Tuition: Home Tuition (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 292 and 294 together. The home tuition scheme is designed to provide compensatory instruction for pupils with medical ailments which cause major disruption to their attendance at school on a continuing basis. Home tuition may also be sanctioned where a child cannot attend school at all or is absent for a significant proportion of the school year due to...

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: This Government has shown a clear determination to dramatically improve the financial support available to those students who need it most. We introduced a Top Up Grant, which currently benefits over 12,000 students this year. The higher, non-adjacent special rate of maintenance is based on the maximum personal rate of Social Welfare Unemployment Assistance. This year the top up grant was...

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (18 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Officials in my Department have been in contact with officials in County Clare VEC concerning the student referred to by the Deputy. I understand that the student completed a degree level course in 2004/05 and is commencing his first postgraduate level course in 2006/07, at Masters level, having had a break in studies for a year. I also understand that documentation in respect of the grant...

Written Answers — Road Safety: Road Safety (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 499 and 532 together. I have no plans to introduce driver education, in the form of driving lessons, in schools, and this is not the norm within the EU. As the Deputy may be aware, a report produced for the NCCA by an expert group which included representatives of the National Safety Council, the Garda Síochána, the Irish Insurance Federation, and the...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: My Department is in liaison with the school in question regarding the delivery of the project on a devolved basis under the Small Schools Scheme.

Written Answers — School Accommodation: School Accommodation (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 501 and 549 together. An application for capital funding towards the provision of an extension has been assessed and the long term projected staffing, on which the accommodation needs will be based, has recently been determined and notified to the school authority. In order to determine how best to provide for the school's accommodation needs into the future,...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The large scale building project for the school referred to by the Deputy was one of the projects I announced in 2005 for proceeding to tender and construction over a 12 to 15 month period. Officials in my Department are currently in the process of arranging a meeting with the school and their Design Team to discuss the revised Stage 3 submission (Developed Sketch Scheme). When my officials...

Written Answers — Educational Projects: Educational Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 503 and 515 together. Meetings are continuing at an official level between my Department, the Department of Health and Children, the Higher Education Authority and the Health Service Executive in relation to a proposed School of Podiatry. Pending the finalisation of these discussions it is not possible to advise when a call for proposals to establish the...

Written Answers — Education Grants: Education Grants (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 504 and 505 together. I wish to advise the Deputy that the information regarding the number of home tuition grants applied for and approved and drawn each year since 2000 to date in 2006 is not readily available in my Department. However I can confirm that officials in my Department has recently revised procedures to ensure that this information will be...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The Property Management Section of the Office of Public Works, which acts on behalf of my Department in relation to site acquisitions generally, has been requested to source a site for the school referred to by the Deputy. On foot of advertising, a number of proposals were received by the OPW. A Technical Assessment has been carried out on all site proposals and OPW are currently awaiting...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The Property Management Section of the Office of Public Works, which acts on behalf of my Department in relation to site acquisitions generally, has been asked to source a site for a particular school in the Edmonsbury area of Lucan. In addition, my Department is actively considering the issue of whether to formally request the local authority to consider the use of their compulsory purchase...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The school to which the Deputy refers commenced operation in September 2002 with provisional recognition from the Department on the basis that it would be providing multi-denominational education in the Clontarf/Marino/ Fairview area of Dublin. It is a condition of recognition that the Patron must provide suitable accommodation in the stated area which must be capable of meeting the growing...

Written Answers — Pupil-Teacher Ratio: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: As the Deputy will be aware, major improvements have been made in staffing at primary in recent years. At the beginning of the current school year there are no less than 4000 extra teachers in our primary schools, compared with 2002. The average class size in our primary schools is 24 and there is now one teacher for 17 pupils at primary level. Children with special needs and those from...

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: There has been no delay in the establishment of the Grangegorman Development Agency. I announced earlier this year the appointment of Mr. John Fitzgerald as Chairperson of the Agency and I am now actively considering the other appointments to the Agency. However, a number of necessary measures have to be in place to allow the work of the Agency to function properly such as the location of...

Written Answers — School Enrolments: School Enrolments (17 Oct 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The latest figures available to my Department indicate that there are in excess of 22,000 children of immigrants enrolled at primary level and in excess of 12,000 at post-primary level. My Department does not keep statistics relating to the residency status of the parents of these children. Figures are not available at third-level. In order to ensure that children who do not have English or...