Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The number one priority for my Department and the wider schools sector is to re-open our schools as fully, normally and safely as possible at the start of the new school year. Notwithstanding my Department’s overall objective, the Department will continue to work with the education partners to address challenges where digital and remote learning options may not be possible.

Schools have been very innovative is supporting their students during the school closure including developing measures to address challenges where the schools and or students are in areas with poor or no broadband services. Officials in my Department have liaised with colleagues in the DCCAE to raise the issue of barriers to connectivity impacting access to remote learning. Minister Bruton announced earlier this year, a package of additional supports from the telecoms companies including that access to healthcare and educational resource websites identified by the Government will be zero-rated for all customers where technically feasible. The Telecommunications industry has also introduced update for data limits for consumers to assist their customers during the Covid-19 to access online services without exceeding their data limits.

Information as to the broadband connectivity available to individual children in their homes would not be available to the Department. In the context of the National Broadband Plan Intervention area implementation, the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment are addressing the needs of those areas with poor connectivity.

As part of the implementation of the Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020 - Enhancing Teaching, Learning and Assessment, funding of €210m for ICT Infrastructure will be distributed by my Department to primary and second level schools over the five years of the Strategy. €110m has issued over the last three years and a further €50m has recently been issued in respect of the 2019-2020 school year. It is expected a further tranche of €50m will issue in the 2020-2021 school year.

This ICT Grant funding issues to schools, as schools are best placed to identify the requirements of their own student cohort and to meet those requirements. In the context of the current public health crisis this funding can be focussed on assisting schools to address ICT needs including devices, software and other ICT solutions to support the provision of remote learning.  This can include the purchase of ICT devices that can be shared with students who do not have access to devices, essential learning platforms and other ICT infrastructure to support the provision of remote learning. 

Full details regarding the funding are set out in Circulars 0031/2020 (€40m funding) and 0032/2020 (€10m funding) which are available on the Department’s website at

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Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware, yesterday I announced The Roadmap for The Full Return to School, along with funding of over €370 million to support primary and post primary schools as they prepare for reopening.

It is recognised that a school in preparing for full reopening, may require some reconfiguration works to ensure that all available space in the school is availed of, including class space, to safely maximising physical distancing.

The type of adaption works may include, but are not limited to,  reconfiguration of classroom space, re-purposing rooms to provide additional space, adapting storage facilities, purchasing furniture, altering desk layouts, adapting toilet areas.  As each school setting is different, a ‘one size fits all approach’ is not appropriate, individual schools are best placed to decide on the appropriate re-configuration works for their school.

By providing funding to schools through a Minor Works Grant, schools will have necessary flexibility to implement these kind of reconfiguration measures in their school quickly.

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Yesterday, 27July, my Department published the report to Government “Reopening Our Schools, The Roadmap for the Full Return to School”.  

This Roadmap set outs how schools will reopen for all students from the end of August and what the operation of our schools will look like and be sustainable in a COVID-19 context.  It has been developed in line with public health advice issued by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC), the Roadmap for Society and Business, and follows comprehensive and intensive engagement with education stakeholders including the school management bodies and staff representatives.

The Roadmap provides for the reopening of all schools to all students but each school must be ready for a situation where a school may be faced with closure (in whole or part) for a period during which the curriculum will need to be delivered remotely.  This will necessitate an alternative provision approach. 

The continuity of teaching and learning during the emergency period was achieved with significant additional effort from all school staff working remotely to ensure students were supported during this time. Most schools put in place arrangements to communicate with students and parents demonstrating innovation and resilience by providing flexible local responses. 

The Department is updating its Continuity of Schooling Guidance documents to support schools in responding in an agile way in the event of localised school closure.

Specifically schools will be provided with guidance and support to put in place arrangements to facilitate communication with and between staff, between staff and learners and to facilitate development of online approaches to remote and blended learning in the event that such is required.

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The number one priority for my Department and the wider schools sector is to re-open our schools as fully, normally and safely as possible at the start of the new school year. Notwithstanding my Department’s overall objective, the Department will continue to work with the education partners to address challenges where digital and remote learning options may not be possible. Information as to the broadband connectivity available to individual children in their homes would not be available to the Department. In the context of the National Broadband Plan Intervention area implementation, the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment are addressing the needs of those areas with poor connectivity.

As part of the implementation of the Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020 - Enhancing Teaching, Learning and Assessment, funding of €210m for ICT Infrastructure will be distributed by my Department to primary and second level schools over the five years of the Strategy. €110m has issued over the last three years and a further €50m has recently been issued in respect of the 2019-2020 school year. It is expected a further tranche of €50m will issue in the 2020-2021 school year.

This ICT Grant funding issues to schools, as schools are best placed to identify the requirements of their own student cohort and to meet those requirements. In the context of the current public health crisis this funding can be focussed on assisting schools to address ICT needs including devices, software and other ICT solutions to support the provision of remote learning.  This can include the purchase of ICT devices that can be shared with students who do not have access to devices, essential learning platforms and other ICT infrastructure to support the provision of remote learning. 

Full details regarding the funding are set out in Circulars 0031/2020 (€40m funding) and 0032/2020 (€10m funding) which are available on the Department’s website at

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