Written answers
Tuesday, 8 December 2015
Department of Education and Skills
Consultancy Contracts Data
Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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492. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide in tabular form, for each year since March 2011, all external consultant reports commissioned by her Department; the costs per report; the company involved; the title of the report and the publication date. [43661/15]
Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Details in relation to consultants engaged by my department are compiled annually in respect of the previous year and in this regard I attach details in respect of the years 2011 to 2014 inclusive. All consultancy engagements during this period are listed and the status of any report that may have been produced is indicated in each case. Details in respect of consultants engaged in 2015 will not be compiled until January 2016.
2011
| Consultants, Experts, Advisors | Start date | Completion date | Status of Report | reports/reviews/studies | Total Cost 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Centre for Cross Border Studies | October-11 | December-11 | * | 2011 annual review paper on Northern Ireland Postgraduate Courses | €2,420.00 |
| Jim Duffy & Pat McLoughlin members of an independent panel | February-11 | April-11 | No Report | Recommendations to the Minister on the preferred proposal for designation of a single awarding authority together with recommendations considered necessary in relation to modification or development of the preferred proposal for implementation purposes | €1,927.86 |
| Gartner | October-11 | October-14 | No Report | Subscription for provision of ICT research, advice, guidance & related services 1/10/2011 - 30/09/2012 | €35,150.49 |
| Sr. Eileen Randles | May-10 | November-10 | * | Review in an appeal against an inspection under section 13 (9) of the Education Act 1998 | €920.00 |
| Dr Simon Marginson | January-11 | March-11 | Published by the HEA June 2011 | Criteria for the proposed re-designation of amalgamated institutes of Technology Universities arising from the recommendations of the National Strategy for Higher Education to 2030 | €9,075.00 |
| Farrell Grant Sparks | October-10 | June-11 | Completed | Advice on necessary redactions and initial advice on possible updated accounting arrangements | €8,410.71 |
| Forum on Patronage & Pluralism in the Primary Sector-Professor John Coolahan, Dr Caroline Hussey, Fionnuala Kilfeather | April-11 | January-12 | Published April 2012 | Report to the Minister on the Forum on Patronage & Pluralism in the Primary Sector. | €20,000.00 |
| Price Waterhouse Coopers LLP (PWC) Belfast | December-10 | March-12 | Published March 2012 | Evaluation of the Special Education Support Service. | €97,866.01 |
| Goodbody Economic Consultants | April-11 | December-11 | Published February 2012 | Evaluation of the Initial Implementation of Síolta, the National Quality framework for Early Childhood Education | €31,280.92 |
| The PA Consulting Group | July-11 | November-11 | Published November 2011 | Evaluation of the training and education programmes for the unemployed delivered under LMAF 2010 | €52,003.38 |
| Fitzpatrick & Associates | February-11 | August-11 | Published ESF website August 2011 | Mid term Evaluation of the Human Capital Investment Operational Programme 2007-2013 | €61,589.00 |
| Deloitte | March-11 | April-11 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the Lifelong Learning Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of Declarations of Assurance from International Section to the European Commission | €13,212.99 |
| Public Authority Pension Services Ltd | June-10 | June-11 | * | Pensions advisory work relating to the establishment of a pension scheme for staff of the NCTE | €4,791.60 |
| Analysis Mason | July-11 | April-12 | * | Commercial Financial & Technical Procurement advice for Schools Broadband Tender | €63,632.51 |
| Grant Thornton | September-11 | October-11 | * | External audit of Dell and Waterford Crystal EGF programmes | €5,445.00 |
| * Internal reports -not for publication | 2011 Total: | €407,725.47 |
2012
| Consultants, Experts, Advisors | Start date | Completion date | Status of Report | Reports/Reviews/Studies | Total Cost 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Analysis Mason | July-11 | March-13 | * | Commercial, financial and technical advice on the procurement of broadband services for schools | €52,040.42 |
| Goodbody Economic Consultants | April-11 | December-11 | Published | Evaluation of the Initial Implementation of Síolta, the National Quality framework for Early Childhood Education | €16,747.68 |
| Mazars | 2012 | 2012 | * | IT Security Audit of the EUSF IT Database | €5,063.91 |
| Mazars | July-11 | June-12 | * | Audit of Labour Market Activation Fund (LMAF) | €9,839.14 |
| Version 1 | April-12 | December-12 | No Report | Provision of Oracle Financials training support along with training documentation in the implementation of Performance Budgeting | €2,070.00 |
| Mokum Change Management Ltd | April-12 | December-12 | No Report | Provision of Oracle Financials training support along with training documentation in the implementation of Performance Budgeting | €17,302.88 |
| Seamus O'Dwyer-Consulting and Training | July-12 | January-13 | No Report | Training and expert advice relating to the Public Service Pensions Bill and training and advice in relation to the Legal Framework and Family Law | €2,700.00 |
| Sydney Blain | October-11 | February-12 | * | Review of an appeal against an inspection under section 13(9) of the Education Act | €718.75 |
| Mokum Change Management Ltd | April-12 | December-12 | No Report | Provision of Oracle Financials functional & accounting advice in moving from a four vote operating unit to a single operating unit | €11,606.90 |
| Sir Jim Rose | December-12 | 2020 | No Report | Provision of international expertise on Literacy & Numeracy to the Literacy and Numeracy Implementation Advisory Committee | €3,870.13 |
| Gartner | October-11 | October-14 | No Report | Subscription for provision of ICT research, advice, guidance & related services | €36,788.67 |
| Sion Quality Healthcare Solutions | October-12 | October-12 | * | Completion of a workplace assessment for staff member with a disability and resulting report | €370.00 |
| Pat McLoughlin | February-11 | April-11 | No Report | Costs relating to Recommendations to the Minister on the preferred proposal for designation of a single awarding authority together with recommendations considered necessary in relation to modification or development of the preferred proposal for implementation purposes which were paid in 2012 | €83.66 |
| The Centre for Cross Border Studies | October-12 | December-12 | * | 2012 annual review paper on Northern Ireland Postgraduate Courses | €1,845.00 |
| Deloitte | March-12 | April-12 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the Lifelong Learning Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of Declarations of Assurance from International Section to the European Commission | €16,568.10 |
| 2012 Total: | €177,615.24 |
2013
| Consultants, Experts, Advisors | Start date | Completion date | Status of Report | Reports/Reviews/Studies | Total Cost 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Tony Crooks | February-13 | June-13 | * | Review of an inspection report under Section 13(9) of the Education Act 1998. | €460.00 |
| The Centre for Cross Border Studies | October-13 | December-13 | No Report | 2013 annual review paper Northern Ireland Postgraduate Courses | €1,845.00 |
| Accenture | September-13 | October-13 | No Report | Consulting services in relation to the Management Framework Agreement between City of Dublin Education & Training Board and the Department of Education & Skills for the centralised Administration of Student Grants. | €5,904.00 |
| University of Birmingham on behalf of Dr Mike Linden | November-13 | March-14 | Date of publication to be decided | Review of Visiting Teachers for children with hearing & Visual Impairment (VTHVI) Service, Ireland | €10,947.00 |
| University of Manchester on behalf of Dr Wendy MC Cracken | November-13 | March-14 | Date of publication to be decided | Review of Visiting Teachers for children with hearing & Visual Impairment (VTHVI) Service, Ireland | €0.00** |
| Mokum Change Management Ltd (IT consultancy) | April-12 | February-13 | No Report | Post Performance Budgeting Support- Consultancy | €2,169.14 |
| Gartner (IT consultancy) | October-11 | October-14 | No Report | IT Leaders Advisor Subscription 07/2013 to 06/2014 including credit in respect of 07-08/2013. Provision of ICT Research, advice, guidance and related services. | €41,061.50 |
| Padraig McNamara | October-13 | November-13 | * | External Review of historic funding and financial arrangements for Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) centres funded by the Department. | €0.00** |
| Deloitte | November-13 | Q2-2014 | No Report | To assist in development of a new organisational design for Education & Training Boards (ETBs) and SOLAS | €0.00** |
| Deloitte | October-13 | Q2-2014 | * | Provision of external expert assistance for the development of a Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) and implementation roadmap for an integrated payroll shared service for the ETB/SOLAS sector in accordance with the shared services commitments set out in the Government's Public Service Reform Plan. | €0.00** |
| Educational Research Centre | December-12 | February-14 | * | Consultancy Services to provide input to ICT Census of Primary, Post Primary and special schools and analysis of census data | €0.00** |
| Public Authority Pensions Services Ltd | December-12 | March-13 | No Report | Pensions Advisory work relating to the establishment of a pension scheme for the staff of the NCTE | €2,152.50 |
| Fitzpatrick's Associates/AECON | December-13 | April-14 | 1st report April14 Final Report Jan 2015 | Ex-Ante Evaluation of the ESF Operational Programme in preparation for the period 2014-2020 | €0.00** |
| Mazars | November13 | January-14 | * | External Audit of EGF Talk Talk Programme | €0.00** |
| Deloitte | March-13 | April-14 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the Lifelong Learning Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of Declarations of Assurance from International Section to the European Commission. | €14,475.34 |
| Seamus O'Dwyer Consulting & Training | July-12 | January-13 | No Report | Provision of training & advice relating to the Public Service Pensions Bill | €200.00 |
| Stratigos Ltd | October-13 | .December-14 | No Report | Provision of customised Business Process Improvement training to include coaching (with provision of advice) of relevant staff | €4,428.00 |
| Version 1 | December-13 | .March-14 | No Report | Shared Financial Services Project - provision of Oracle Financials support to set up purchasing module | €7,595.25 |
| Deloitte | December-13 | December-13 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the new Erasmus+ Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of the ex-ante compliance assessment from International Section to the European Commission. | 0.00** |
| 2013 Total: | €91,237.73 |
**Consultancies engaged in 2013 but where no payment had been made by year end
2014
| Consultants, Experts, Advisors | Start Date | Completion Date | Status of Report | Purpose of Consultancy | Total Cost 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gartner | Nov-11 | Jun-15 | No Report | Provision of ICT research, advice, guidance and related services to the IT Unit | 42,435.00 |
| Dr Mike McLinden Dr Wendy McCracken | Nov-13 | Jun-14 | Published Feb 2015 | Review of the Visiting Teachers service for blind and visually impaired and deaf and hard of hearing (VTVHI) | €15,363.24 |
| Padraig McNamara | Oct-13 | Nov-13 | * | External Review of funding and financial arrangements for Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) centres funded by the Department. | €4,000.00 |
| National council for the Blind | Jan-14 | Feb-14 | No Report | Accessibility audit of the Department's website | €4,850.00 |
| MKA (Mitchell Kane Associates) | Jan-14 | Apr-14 | No Report | Creation of brand guidelines and logo re Springboard, ICT Skills Conversion, Momentum, the Skillnets Jobseekers Programmes, Job Bridge and Jobs Plus | €5,412.00 |
| Centre for Effective Services (CES) | Jun-14 | Mar-15 | May-15 | SUSI Review - Phase 1. Review of the learning gained from the establishment of the Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI). | €7,000.00 |
| Centre for Cross Border Studies | Oct-14 | Dec-14 | No Report | Review Paper on Southern Irish Postgraduates in Northern Ireland, to comply with Section 8(7) of the Student Support Act 2011. | €1,845.00 |
| SIA Management Group | Jun-14 | Jun-14 | No Report | Consultancy Service provided to MAC in relation to Planning Activities. | €2,892.50 |
| Grant Thorton | Sep-14 | Nov-14 | Affidavit to Court of Appeal | Specialist expert advice on the application by STS Ltd to adduce new evidence to the Court of Appeal in its appeal of the HC judgement of 23rd October, 2012 | €35,842.20 |
| Version 1 - ( IT) | Apr-14 | Feb-15 | No Report | Provision of Oracle Financials consultancy services to support the proof of concept phase of the preparation of the move to the Financial Shared Services Project | €34,557.50 |
| Economic & Social Research Institute | Oct-14 | Jan-15 | Published Jan 2015 | Report on the Evaluation of DEIS | 0** |
| Deloitte | Nov-13 | Dec-14 | No Report | New organisational design for ETBs and Solas | 11,623.50 |
| Deloitte | Jan-14 | Jul-14 | * | Provision of support for the development of the Business Case for ETB Shared Services Payroll Project | 81,549.00 |
| Eamonn Stack | Jun-13 | Jun-14 | Jun-14 | Leading a Working Group on proposals for a new model for allocating teaching resources for students with special educational needs to mainstream schools. | €9,880.00 |
| Deloitte | Mar-13 | Apr-14 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the Lifelong Learning Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of Declarations of Assurance to the European commission | €14,975.25 |
| Deloitte | Dec-13 | Dec-13 | * | Audits of the national agencies for the Erasmus + Programme in Ireland to serve as the basis for the submission of Declarations of the ex ante compliance assessment to the European commission | €10,455.00 |
| Fitzpatrick's & Associates | Dec-13 | Jul-14 | Jan-15 | Ex Ante Evaluation of the ESF Operational Programme | €53,218.00 |
| Mazars | Nov-13 | Jan-14 | * | External Auditing Services | €3,195.39 |
| H2 Learning | May-14 | Sep-15 | No Report | Advice and guidance on the development and implementation of the Digital Strategy for schools. | €33,517.50 |
| ICS Skills | Jun-14 | Nov-14 | * | As part of the development of the Digital Strategy for schools, the running of focus groups, conducting analysis and summarise the data, and reporting findings | €19,000.00 |
| Education Research Centre | Jan-13 | Sep-14 | Published Oct 2015 | The provision of input to ICT census of primary, post-primary, and special schools and analysis of census data | €24,624.00 |
| Stratigos Ltd | Oct-13 | Jun-14 | No Report | Business Process Improvement Training (BPI) | €23,899.65 |
| Institute of Public Administration (IPA) | Jul-14 | Mar-15 | No Report | Provision of Guidelines relating to best practice approach by management regarding delegation, meeting and coaching skills. | €2,447.70 |
| Ernst & Young (EY) | Nov-14 | Aug-15 | * | Expert assistance in relation to the development of a baseline report, business case (cost benefit analysis & implementation roadmap) for a financial shared service within the ETB sector. | 0** |
| 2014 Total: | €442,582.43 |
** Consultancies engaged in 2014 but where no payment had been made by year end
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