Results 1,821-1,840 of 7,283 for speaker:Josepha Madigan

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: The NCSE has responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of SNAs and reviews. My Department does not have a role in making individual school determinations. Accordingly, the question has been referred to the NCSE for direct reply. The Special Needs Assistant (SNA) scheme is designed to provide schools...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: The School Inclusion Model (SIM) is based on policy advice from the National Council for Special Education based on the principle of providing the right support at the right time delivered by a range of personnel with relevant qualifications and skill-sets. Its purpose is to help students achieve better outcomes. Independent evaluation is a central part of the project and the outcome will...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: The Department does not manage the recruitment of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs). As the SENOs are employees of the NCSE, it is the NCSE who is responsible for the recruitment and operational management of the SENOs. Accordingly, I am referring your question to the NCSE for their attention and direct reply to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: The NCSE has responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of SNAs and reviews. The Special Needs Assistant (SNA) scheme is designed to provide schools with additional adult support staff who can assist children with special educational needs who also have additional and significant care needs. Such support...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 469 to 474, inclusive, together. Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has responsibility for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (15 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: Under the Assistive Technology scheme, as set out in my Department’s Circular 0010/2013, funding is provided to schools towards the cost of computers and specialist equipment, which are required for educational purposes. All equipment provided under this scheme supports children with more complex disabilities who, in order to access the school curriculum, require essential...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Disadvantaged Status (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I thank the Deputy for her question. I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley. My understanding is that more than 800 schools in this country already have DEIS status. As the Deputy knows, the entire DEIS model is under review at present. Funding was almost doubled to €32 million in the budget from the €18 million available last year....

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Disadvantaged Status (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: All schools that did so last year will automatically provide special educational needs facilities, which will be important going forward. That is just a general point around the provision of placements for children with additional needs. I again commend Scoil Mhuire Lourdes girls' school on volunteering to open a special class and, as I said, there are enhanced capitation rates for that....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 322 and 323 together. Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. The National Council...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special educational needs. A continuum of education provision is in place covering the full range of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: The Special Needs Assistant (SNA) scheme is designed to provide schools with additional adult support staff who can assist children with special educational needs who also have additional and significant care needs. Such support is provided in order to facilitate the attendance of those pupils at school and also to minimise disruption to class or teaching time for the pupils concerned, or...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: Enabling children with special educational needs to receive an education is a priority for this Government. It is also a key priority for me as Minister for Special Education & Inclusion. This year, my Department will spend in excess of €2 Billion, or over 25% of the Department’s budget on providing additional teaching and care supports for children with special...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 26 - Education (Revised)
Vote 45 - Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I will address the issue of SNA accreditation. Suffice to say, first of all, that SNAs are critical to children with additional needs. We know that and we have increased the number of SNAs by 81% since 2011. By the end of this year, we will have more than 19,000. A review of the SNA scheme was carried out by the National Council for Special Education in 2018. It said we really needed...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 26 - Education (Revised)
Vote 45 - Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I thank the Chairman. I completely concur. Obviously, the pandemic was extremely difficult for all children but particularly for those with additional needs. On contingency planning, as far as I am aware, the Department is part of the Government task force and there will be work done in that context. The Chairman is quite right that the impact of school closures on children with...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 26 - Education (Revised)
Vote 45 - Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (10 Feb 2022)

Josepha Madigan: I thank Deputy Farrell for his interest in special education, on which he speaks to me regularly. I am not sure if the Deputy was in attendance when I mentioned the EPSEN Act earlier. I have launched a review of the Act, which is not before time as it is 17 years since the Act was first published in 2004. Parts of the Act were never commenced and there were good reasons for that at the...