Results 19,221-19,240 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (23 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I wish to advise the Deputy that the school in question currently has the services of a shared learning support teacher post and a shared resource teacher post, supporting a total enrolment of 66 pupils. At the moment the special educational needs of the pupil concerned are being met from within these resources.

Written Answers — Youth Services: Youth Services (23 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The Youth Work Act 2001 provides a legal framework for the provision of youth work programmes and services to be organised by the Minister for Education and Science, the vocational education committees and national and regional youth work organisations. Section 1 of the Act provides for sections to be commenced at different stages. Sections 2 to 7, inclusive, 17, 18 and 24 have been commenced...

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (23 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: My Department funds four maintenance grant schemes for third level and further education students. These are the higher education grants scheme, the vocational education committees' scholarships scheme, the third level maintenance grants scheme for trainees and the maintenance grants scheme for students attending post-leaving certificate courses. The higher education grants scheme is...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The specific information requested by the Deputy regarding the total amount that has been awarded to parents of autistic children in receipt of home tuition grants is not readily available in my Department. I can confirm, however, that home tuition ranging from five to 20 hours per week for children with autistic spectrum disorders, ASD, may be sanctioned, depending on the basis of the...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: An application for refurbishment and extension has been received from the school authority of Cliffoney national school. Additional information has recently been provided by the school authority and this is being examined in my Department's school planning section. When a decision is made on how best to provide for the accommodation needs of the school, the project will be progressed in the...

Written Answers — Therapy Training: Therapy Training (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: In May 2002, the then Minister for Education and Science announced the provision of 175 additional therapy training places to tackle shortages of physiotherapists, occupational therapists and speech and language therapists as identified by the report, Current and Future Supply and Demand Conditions in the Labour Market for Certain Professional Therapists, which was undertaken by Dr. Peter...

Written Answers — Departmental Transport: Departmental Transport (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The travel expenses paid by my Department for the 2004 period can be broken down as follows: car mileage expenses €1,179,081.92; train and bus expenses €98,559.33; and taxi expenses €94,698.76. The overall total is €1,372,340.01. A substantial amount of the travel expenses paid by my Department refer to the schools inspectorate.

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I can confirm that my Department has sanctioned the following provision for pupils with ADD, ODD and ADHD at primary level: eight special classes for pupils with emotional behavioural problems including ODD and ADD; six special classes for pupils with severe emotional behavioural problems; and two special classes for pupils with ADHD in mainstream primary schools. All such classes operate at...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: In those primary and post-primary schools that are served by the National Educational Psychological Service, NEPS, the length of time before an educational psychologist sees children with attention deficit disorder, ADD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, ODD, or dyslexia varies widely, according to the severity of the presenting symptoms. Each case...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 535, 537 and 582 together. My Department is considering the staffing requirements in primary schools for the 2005-06 school year which is determined on the basis of the enrolment on 30 September 2004 and in accordance with the agreed staffing schedule which is expected to be notified to boards of management shortly. A review of educational disadvantage...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The mainstream staffing of a primary school is determined by applying the enrolment of the school on 30 September of the previous school year to a staffing schedule agreed between my Department and the education partners. In accordance with the staffing schedule, the staffing of the school referred to by the Deputy for the 2004-05 school year is a principal plus 23 mainstream class teachers,...

Written Answers — Third Level Fees: Third Level Fees (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: Tuition fees for post leaving certificate courses were abolished with effect from the 1995-96 academic year. However, schools may impose the following charges on students: textbooks; uniforms, clothing and equipment where they become the personal property of the student; student services; registration charges by professional bodies; and assessment and examination fees. Schools may require...

Written Answers — Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme: Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The vocational training opportunities scheme, VTOS, is a second-chance education and training programme which provides courses of up to two years' duration for unemployed persons. There are no plans to reduce the entry age for VTOS from 21 years on the basis that the programme has been designed for older people with a record of unemployment, with special targeting of those who have been...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: In the light of the reality that pupils in the high incidence disability categories of mild and borderline mild general learning disability and dyslexia are distributed throughout the education system, my Department, in consultation with educational interests, developed a general model of resource teacher allocation to schools to support students in these disability categories. This model...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: An application for five hours special needs assistant, SNA, support was received from the pupil's school on 22 September 2004. This support was sanctioned on 25 November 2004. The pupil was also granted three hours resource teaching support in February 2005. The school subsequently submitted an application for additional SNA support to my Department. I am pleased to advise the Deputy that my...

Written Answers — Employee Assistance Service: Employee Assistance Service (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: A pilot programme for an employee assistance service for teachers was agreed during PCW negotiations. In 1996 the then Minister for Education announced the introduction of a two year pilot welfare scheme for teachers which commenced in 1998. In August 2000 a new interim phase began for two years with Cork Education Centre as nominated employer. The scheme was overseen by a steering committee...

Written Answers — Higher Education Grants: Higher Education Grants (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 543 and 545 together. Since the inception of the higher education grants scheme in 1968, students pursuing postgraduate courses at approved colleges in Northern Ireland can apply for grants in respect of their fees and maintenance under the higher education grants scheme. As and from the 1996-97 academic year, the terms of my Department's student support...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: My Department is moving towards a model of devolving the responsibility for building projects to school management authorities, where appropriate. The devolving of funding to local level will accommodate school authorities to have responsibility and ownership of their building projects and assist in moving projects in a specific timeframe through the design process, to tender action and...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The employment of school staff is the responsibility of the individual school board of management. Substitute teachers may be employed by a board on a casual basis to replace a temporary or permanent teacher who is absent on approved paid leave. A board may recoup the cost of employing these substitute teachers from my Department.

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2005)

Mary Hanafin: The Deputy may be aware that the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, which was established recently and which has been operational since 1 January 2005 is responsible for processing applications for special educational needs, SEN, supports. Some 71 special educational needs organisers, SENOs, have been recruited throughout the country and will be a focal point of contact for schools...