Results 13,341-13,360 of 19,621 for speaker:Norma Foley

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I am keenly aware of the huge contribution made by all Principals in our schools, including teaching principals. The COVID-19 supports provided under The Roadmap for the Full Return to School in 2020, included specific funding to support Principals who undertake teaching duties in primary schools. This funding provided each teaching principal with a minimum of one release day per week....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staff (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Circulars were recently issued by my Department in relation to a pay increase for public servants under the national agreement “Building Momentum” which was agreed between the Government and ICTU. Building Momentum includes a 1% increase for public servants from 1 October 2021 and the circulars were issued to inform schools and other public bodies of the new pay rates....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020. The purpose of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Refurbishment (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I would like to inform the Deputy that the school in question has applied for an External Environments Project under Category 10 of the Summer Works Scheme, this Category has not yet been reached for assessment. The Summer Works Scheme which launched in 2019 is a multi-annual scheme whereby all applications made in June 2019 are held in the system for consideration under future rounds of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Broadband Infrastructure (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Through the Schools Broadband Programme, the policy of my Department is to offer the best quality connectivity to all schools in line with the technical solutions available in the market and within financial constraints. Currently investment of some €13m is allocated annually for the provision of internet connectivity to schools. Broadband capacity can vary across geographical...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The approach to supporting schools to operate safely during Covid-19 has been to follow and implement public health advice. My Department has an ongoing close working relationship with the Department of Health and the HSE throughout the period of the pandemic in the context of implementing important infection prevention control measures in schools to ensure that they can operate safely. This...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy will be aware, a major building project to construct permanent accommodation for the school in question is included in the Department’s school building programme. When constructed, the new school will provide accommodation for 1,000 pupils and will also include a special education needs base. The building project is currently at Stage 3 of the architectural planning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Funding provided to schools by my Department is in respect of education provision at primary and post-primary level. Schools may access funding from other government departments and Local Authorities, from their own resources or from other sources in respect of facilities provided by the school for their own use or the use of the wider community. My Department in consultation with the school...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Educational Disadvantage (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Budget 2022 has provided for an allocation of €18million for 2022 and €32million for 2023 to extend the DEIS programme to further schools with the highest levels of disadvantage. This represents an increase of over 20% in funding for the DEIS programme and will enable an expansion in 2022 of the programme to further schools. This package follows an extensive body of work...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Equipment (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: Under the provisions of the Education Act 1998, the Board of Management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school. The decision to install a defibrillator is made at local school level and is a matter for the board of management of each individual school. The wider question of the need for defibrillators to be made available is primarily a public health matter and would...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Admissions (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: As the Deputy will be aware, a major building project to construct permanent accommodation for the school in question is included in the Department’s school building programme. When constructed, the new school will provide accommodation for 1,000 pupils and will also include a special education needs base. The building project is currently at Stage 3 of the architectural planning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The configuration of classes and the deployment of classroom teachers are done at local school level. My Department's guidance to schools is that the number of pupils in any class is kept as low as possible taking all relevant contextual factors into account, for example, classroom accommodation, fluctuating enrolment etc. Under the Programme for Government there is a commitment to seek...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Facilities (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department has in place detailed design guidelines for Primary & Post Primary School Accommodation. These guidelines, are available on my Department's web-site at www.gov.ie/en/publication/7e515-technical-guidance-documents . The guidelines provide for the inclusion of both WCs and storage facilities in all new classrooms in primary schools in so far as possible and bearing in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Accommodation (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department has in place detailed design guidelines for Primary & Post Primary School Specialist Accommodation for Pupils with Special Educational Needs. These guidelines, are available on my Department's website at www.gov.ie/en/publication/7e515-technical-guidance-documents . The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has a statutory function to plan and co-ordinate...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Covid-19 Pandemic (9 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: My Department has always been guided by public health advice in relation to appropriate Covid-19 infection prevention and control measures in place in schools. These measures protect students, their parents and school staff and are very effective. Each school was provided with an updated COVID-19 Response Plan in advance of the return to school. Significant additional resources of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments (4 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I wish to confirm to the Deputy that there are 9 post primary schools in the Drumcondra/Marino school catchment area. The Department records data as reported by schools on an annual basis in respect of their available accommodation and enrolment. The Department also holds records in respect of completed or planned Department-funded school building projects and historic enrolment data....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects (4 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: The planned establishment of a new post-primary school in 2022 to serve the Drumcondra_Marino_Dublin 1 school planning area was announced in 2018 as a result of a countrywide demographic exercise. A further exercise has since been conducted on the necessity for the establishment of a number of planned new schools, including the school to serve this school planning area, taking into account...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Data (4 Nov 2021)

Norma Foley: I wish to confirm to the Deputy that there are 9 post primary schools in the Drumcondra/Marino school catchment area. 4 of these are mixed schools, 3 whose ethos is Inter Denominational and 1 whose ethos is Catholic 3 are boys schools whose ethos is Catholic 2 are girls schools whose ethos is Catholic The Department records data as reported by schools on an annual basis in respect of their...