Results 15,661-15,680 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Psychological Assessments (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: I can inform the Deputy that my Department's National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides educational psychology service to all primary and post primary schools through an assigned NEPS psychologist and in some cases through the Scheme for Commissioning Psychological Assessments (SCPA), full details of which are on the Department's website. Under this scheme schools can have an...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Enrolments Data (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: Mainstream National Schools with fewer than 6 classes (refers to Mainstream Classes only) County Name <6 Classes >=6 Classes Total Carlow 21 21 42 Cavan 52 23 75 Clare 85 27 112 Cork 172 172 344 Donegal 130 45 175 Dublin 57 384 441 Galway 152 78 230 Kerry 95 37 132 Kildare 29 72 101 Kilkenny 41 31 72 Laois 40 25 65 Leitrim 29 9 38 Limerick 77 58 135 Longford 23...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Curriculum (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: My Department welcomes and values the engagement of providers in supporting all aspects of curriculum delivery, in particular in the important area of healthy lifestyles for young people. The Apprentice Chef Programme is one such initiative. Much is being done already in this area by my Department, both in terms of the curriculum delivery and in resourcing. My Department issued guidance to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Early Start centres funded by my Department are staffed by primary school teachers and a childcare assistant also works with each group. This teacher-led staffing arrangement and comparatively favourable staff to child ratio is intended to support a range of special educational needs associated with concentrated disadvantage. However, no S allocation is provided until the child is...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Staff Recruitment (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform announced in Budget 2015 that the public sector recruitment moratorium established in 2009 would end, but that recruitment across the public sector would continue to be managed in a targeted and focused way. In this regard, a Delegated Sanction Agreement (DSA) was put in place for Government Departments and agencies. The specific Employment...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. 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. The staffing arrangements includes a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Recruitment (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. 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. New measures announced in last...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Recruitment (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. 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. The school referred to by the Deputy...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Recruitment (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: Department of Education and Skills Circular 0007/2016 sets out the criteria for the allocation of teaching posts to primary schools for the 2016/2017 school year. The circular includes the provision whereby schools experiencing rapid increases in enrolment can apply for additional permanent mainstream posts on developing grounds, using projected enrolment for the following September, in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Costs (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 131 and 143 together. I am aware of the report referred to by the Deputies. I strongly support any measures that can be put in place to reduce costs for parents. All schools must be sensitive to the financial pressures on parents in making decisions, not just about school uniforms or books, but about any matter that has cost implications for parents. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Industrial Disputes (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: It is important to note that there are four separate industrial actions being carried out by ASTI currently - two of which are directly at play in the current dispute: - Firstly, a series of one-day strikes by ASTI members on the issue of new entrant pay, which started on 27 October and continues on six additional days from 8 November; and - Secondly, the withdrawal of ASTI...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions Redress Scheme (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: Caranua, the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Board, is an independent statutory body established pursuant to the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012 to oversee the use of the cash contributions of up to €110 million, pledged by the religious congregations, to support the needs of survivors of institutional child abuse. The classes of services from which the Board...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions Redress Scheme (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: Caranua, the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Board, is an independent statutory body established pursuant to the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012 to oversee the use of the cash contributions of up to €110 million, pledged by the religious congregations, to support the needs of survivors of institutional child abuse. The processing of individual applications is a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Residential Institutions Statutory Fund (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: As I have explained to the Deputy in reply to previous Parliamentary Questions, Caranua - the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund - is an independent statutory body established pursuant to the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012 to oversee the use of the cash contributions of up to €110 million, pledged by the religious congregations, to support the needs of survivors...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Service Provision (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy will be aware that this Government is committed to ensuring that all children with Special Educational Needs, including those with autism, can have access to an education appropriate to their needs, preferably in school settings through the primary and post primary school network. Such placements facilitate access to individualised education programmes which may draw from a range...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: As the Deputy will be aware, a project for the school referred is included in my Department’s 6 Year Capital Programme and is scheduled to proceed to tender and construction in 2018. Officials from my Department recently advised the school’s Board of Management and the Patron’s representative that following a technical examination of an alternative site being made...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Extra Curricular Activities (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The Department of Education and Skills is responsible for providing schools with the State curriculum.  It is a matter for schools to determine what materials and resources they will use in order to implement the curriculum.  This includes external resources and staffing.  Therefore, it is expected that schools will carry out all necessary checking of the qualifications of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Home Tuition Scheme Eligibility (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: The purpose of the Home Tuition Scheme is to provide a compensatory educational service for children, with a significant medical condition which has caused, and is likely to continue to cause major disruption to school attendance. Eligibility for Home Tuition for children with a significant medical condition is assessed having regard to, in the main, the pupil’s attendance levels...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Closures (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: In relation to the situation of the schools referred to by the Deputy more generally, the Patron has at all times indicated its commitment to the school community to ensure an orderly wind-down during the school’s phased closure. The Patron has recently announced that the Junior school will continue operating until the end of the current academic year in June 2017 and will then close....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Summer Works Scheme Applications (2 Nov 2016)

Richard Bruton: I wish to advise the Deputy that the school in question applied for funding for mechanical works, a category 3 project, under the Summer Works Scheme (SWS) (2016-17). The Circular (0055/2015) which accompanied the scheme and which may be accessed on my Department's website, states that schools should prioritise and identify the most urgent project for which funding is being sought. As the...