Results 14,401-14,420 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — School Services Contracts: School Services Contracts (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Vending machines may be placed in schools at the discretion of the schools' management authorities and are currently installed in many post-primary schools. It is my intention that under my Department's new PPP programme the contract will provide that the school management authorities will have the final say on the location, content and availability of vending machines.

Written Answers — Public Service Charges: Public Service Charges (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: As outlined in my previous response to the Deputy, the position regarding water charges for schools is that charges payable to the various local authorities do not come within the remit of my Department. It would be a matter for the local authorities to decide whether schools are liable to pay such charges. Where it is decided that schools are liable for such charges, the cost would form part...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I am aware of the decreasing number of males entering the teaching profession, and the issue is of concern to me. That is important to attract more men into teaching for a number of reasons, not least of which is the positive role models that teachers provide in children's lives and the desirability of having both male and female role models in our schools. I genuinely believe that teaching...

Written Answers — Disadvantaged Status: Disadvantaged Status (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The general allocation of learning support-resource teachers, also known as LS-RTs, to schools is intended to cater for children with learning support and high incidence special educational needs. LS-RT allocations are based on pupil numbers, taking into account the differing needs of the most disadvantaged schools and the evidence that boys have greater difficulties than girls do in this...

Written Answers — State Claims Agency: State Claims Agency (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The State Claims Agency, SCA, has responsibility for deciding on the issue of costs in the case to which the Deputy refers. The SCA has said that it deals with each case on an individual basis and that its approach here will be measured and sensitive. The SCA will be consulting my Department on the issue of costs. I agree with its opinion that the matter should be pursued in a measured and...

Written Answers — Early Childhood Education: Early Childhood Education (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The Early Start pre-school project was established in 40 primary schools in designated areas of urban disadvantage in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Galway, Drogheda and Dundalk during 1994 and 1995. There are 1,680 places in these centres. Targeted early childhood education provision is a key element of the school support programme under the new action plan for educational inclusion,...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: My Department has received a proposal from the school in question for the provision of a July programme for pupils attending the school's special unit for pupils with autism. This proposal is currently under consideration in my Department and the school authority will be notified of the outcome as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Irish Language: Irish Language (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Further deliberation and discussions with the relevant interests are needed before a definitive decision on the project can be made. It is intended that these discussions will be completed as quickly as possible.

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: My Department funds three means-tested maintenance grant schemes for third level education students in respect of attendance on approved courses in approved third level institutions and one maintenance grant scheme in respect of students attending approved post-leaving certificate courses in approved post-leaving certificate centres. These are the higher education grants scheme, the...

Written Answers — School Curriculum: School Curriculum (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: In the school year 2004-05, a total of 24,798 post-primary students took transition year. This figure reflects 7.4% of the overall enrolment of students at post-primary level and 18.4% of students at senior cycle level in that school year.

Written Answers — Schools Refurbishment: Schools Refurbishment (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: An application for capital funding towards the provision of an extension to provide ancillary accommodation has been received from the school referred to by the Deputy. The project has been assessed in accordance with the prioritisation criteria for large scale building projects. The project is being considered in the context of the School Building and Modernisation Programme 2006-10.

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that the school in question has accepted the grant to build a new three-teacher school under the 2006 small schools scheme that I announced recently. The initiative operates on a devolved basis and allows boards of management to address their accommodation and building priorities with a guaranteed amount of funding and allows them control over the pace at...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The mainstream staffing of a primary school is determined by reference to the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous school year. The actual number of mainstream posts sanctioned is determined by reference to a staffing schedule, which is issued to all primary schools each year. According to data submitted to my Department by the board of management of the school referred to...

Written Answers — Disadvantaged Status: Disadvantaged Status (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The allocation of learning support teaching resources does not fall under the DEIS initiative. Delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, the new action plan for educational inclusion, provides for a standardised system for identifying levels of disadvantage and a new integrated school support programme, SSP. The process of identifying primary and second level schools for...

Written Answers — Disadvantaged Status: Disadvantaged Status (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Giving Children an Even Break, GCEB, was a programme introduced in 2001 to ensure that participating primary schools were provided with a range of additional supports including teacher posts and other non-teaching supports to be targeted at disadvantaged pupils. Under the GCEB scheme, my Department provided support commensurate with the levels of concentration in schools of pupils with...

Written Answers — Consultancy Contracts: Consultancy Contracts (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The information requested by the Deputy in Parliamentary Question No. 1292 covers the period 1997 to date. Due to the scope and detailed nature of the information sought, it was not readily available in the format requested. A trawl of all units of my Department to collect the details has taken place and a co-ordinated return is being finalised. I hope to be in a position to forward this...

Child Abuse. (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Litigation against my Department relating to child abuse arises in two contexts. The first relates to former residents of institutions who suffered abuse while in those institutions. Former residents have been entitled to make an application to the Residential Institutions Redress Board for an award in recognition of the abuse they suffered. A person can decide not to apply to the redress...

Child Abuse. (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: The Louise O'Keeffe case is the subject of the next question. It is a particularly sad case in view of the suffering Louise experienced as a young child in her school. The legal advisers of the Department of Education and Science will meet the State Claims Agency this week about that case. The agency will subsequently meet Louise O'Keeffe's solicitors. I have indicated to the agency that this...

Child Abuse. (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: Obviously we intend to ensure that every child is protected and that there are proper child protection policies in schools. The vetting procedures, which we will discuss later, are in place in the schools. People should have due regard for the people who have unsupervised access to children, be they volunteers or employees, in the school setting. I do not intend to change the management...

Child Abuse. (5 Apr 2006)

Mary Hanafin: I sympathise greatly with Ms O'Keeffe for the suffering that she was put through by her primary school teacher in the 1970s. I have heard her speak in recent weeks and it is clear that she is still in a great deal of pain. There is no doubt that a great wrong that was done to her when she was just a little girl and that this naturally still hurts her deeply. However, while I have great...