Parliamentary questions

Special Educational Needs Service Provision

Michael Healy-Rae

628. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for a special needs assistant for a child (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33997/15]

Education and Training Boards Staff

Jonathan O'Brien

629. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of resource persons, resource workers, and resource co-ordinators within Youthreach structures; if those persons must be registered with the Teaching Council; and if they are considered teachers by her Department. [33998/15]

Schools Building Projects Status

Seán Fleming

630. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills if adequate funding will be provided to complete a project (details supplied) in County Laois; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34010/15]

School Accommodation Provision

Michael McGrath

631. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for grant aid for major capital works by a school (details supplied) in County Cork; the status of the application; when a decision is likely to be made; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34052/15]

Minor Works Scheme Restoration

Pat Deering

632. Deputy Pat Deering asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will allocate the minor works grants to national schools in this school year. [34062/15]

Garda Vetting of Personnel

Catherine Murphy

633. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of departmental staff with access to the primary online database who have received Garda Síochána vetting for handling data relating to vulnerable children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34084/15]

Education Expenditure

Jerry Buttimer

634. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Education and Skills the steps she has taken to support primary education; if she will continue to support and advance primary education through the allocation of additional resources, as part of budget 2016; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34090/15]

Education Expenditure

Finian McGrath

635. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will protect primary education in the October 2015 budget, particularly in regard to smaller class sizes, which is such a benefit to young children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34098/15]

Student Grant Scheme Appeals

Willie Penrose

636. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Education and Skills the steps she will take to expedite an application for an appeal against the refusal of a higher education grant to a person (details supplied) in County Cavan, given the significant reduction in the parent's income which is variable and non-reliable, but currently well within the income eligibility guidelines; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34131/15]

Special Educational Needs Service Provision

Jonathan O'Brien

637. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 148 of 21 January 2014, if advice on the use of seclusion, isolation, or withdrawal rooms by the National Council for Special Education was ever received; and the detail of this advice. [34134/15]

Departmental Staff Data

Patrick O'Donovan

638. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the numbers of supernumerary positions in her Department, and those agencies, organisations or bodies funded by her Department; the maximum period in each case that supernumerary positions have existed; the total cost in maintaining supernumerary positions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34140/15]

Special Educational Needs Staff

Terence Flanagan

639. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills her views on correspondence (details supplied) regarding special needs assistants; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34159/15]

Student Grant Scheme Eligibility

John Halligan

640. Deputy John Halligan asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to extend eligibility for the special rate of Student Universal Support Ireland grant to those applicants whose family income is below the threshold but who are not currently in receipt of a qualifying social welfare payment; her views that where a family income is below a certain level the special rate should be awarded irrespective of whether the income is earned or awarded through a social welfare payment; that families who are working hard to support themselves but who are on low incomes should not be precluded from being eligible for the special rate grant; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34248/15]

School Transport Eligibility

Robert Troy

641. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason a family (details supplied) in County Westmeath with four children has been granted seats on the bus to a local school for only two children and a letter issued stating the younger two children cannot be accommodated. [34292/15]

Momentum Programme

Noel Harrington

642. Deputy Noel Harrington asked the Minister for Education and Skills to set out the cost of every additional 100 Momentum places; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34297/15]

Springboard Programme

Noel Harrington

643. Deputy Noel Harrington asked the Minister for Education and Skills to set out the cost of every additional 100 Springboard places; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34298/15]

Departmental Contracts

Clare Daly

644. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 549 of 12 May 2015 and given the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report of 29 September 2015 as well as the statement regarding the home tuition scheme, if she will set out the reason her Department did not engage in a competitive procurement process for the provision of these services, as detailed in the report, but instead, as previously highlighted, made only one exception and paid millions of euro exclusively for a number of years to one private commercial organisation, despite her Department being fully aware of similar parent-led charities in existence at that time which provided similar services. [34330/15]

Departmental Contracts

Clare Daly

645. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Education and Skills given the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report of 29 September 2015 and the statement that her Department annually provides details of procurement contracts above €25,000 that have been awarded without a competitive process to both the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Comptroller and Auditor General, to explain the reason her Department failed to include details of the annual payment of millions of euro to the one private commercial organisation in the returns submitted. [34331/15]

Schools Building Projects Status

John McGuinness

646. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 467 of 17 February 2015 regarding a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary and the provision of a new school building, whether a site has been identified; if so, the timeframe for the provision of a new school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34334/15]

School Costs

Jim Daly

647. Deputy Jim Daly asked the Minister for Education and Skills to set out her views on the issuing of written demands for cash payments to parents of school-going children by school authorities in return for providing the children with an education; the steps she will take to eradicate and outlaw this practice by ensuring her Department provides all necessary funding to school authorities to allow them to provide an education to each child without financial charges, as is their constitutional right; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34335/15]