Written Answers Nos. 90-99
90. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education and Skills the circumstances in which a pupil in primary school is entitled to the support of a full time special needs assistants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2124/13]
View answer91. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education and Skills the entitlements that primary school pupils who are profoundly deaf have to the services of an special needs assistants; if they are automatically entitled to a full-time SNA; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2125/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 90 and 91 together.
I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from schools for special educational needs supports, including the allocation of Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools. SNAs are allocated to schools in order to provide for the care needs of children with special educational needs attending such schools. The policy of my Department in relation to the SNA scheme is set out in Circular 07/02, which also provides details regarding the role and duties of an SNA. The NCSE operates within my Department's established criteria for the allocation of Special Education supports and the staffing resources available to my Department.
I wish to advise the Deputy that SNAs are not allocated to individual pupils. The NCSE allocates a quantum of SNA support for each school annually taking into account the care needs of all of the qualifying children enrolled in the school, and on the basis of the assessed care needs of the children, rather than solely by reference to a pupils' disability categorisation. SNAs should then be deployed by schools in a manner which best meets the care support requirements of the children enrolled in the school for whom SNA support has been allocated. It is a matter for schools to allocate support as required, and on the basis of individual need, which allows schools flexibility in how the SNA support is utilised.
All schools have been advised by the NCSE of their SNA staffing allocations for the current school year. Details of the SNA allocations which have been made to each school are available at www.ncse.ie, detailed on a County basis. Where a school considers that they do not have adequate SNA support from within their allocated provision to provide for the care needs of all qualifying pupils, or where schools have enrolled new students with special educational needs, they may apply to the NCSE to have their SNA allocation reviewed and the NCSE has capacity to make additional allocations to schools.
92. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason a person (details supplied) in County Mayo has been denied the higher education grant; if he will have Student Universal Support Ireland re-examine their application with a view to awarding the grant as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2158/13]
View answerOfficials in my Department have confirmed with Student Universal Support Ireland that the grant application of the student referred to by the Deputy for the 2012/13 academic year was awarded a postgraduate fee contribution based on the terms and conditions of the scheme. SUSI has confirmed that the applicant appealed their decision and letter on the appeal issued on 7th January, 2013.
Maintenance support is not available for students entering postgraduate courses in the academic year 2012/13. Students entering approved postgraduates courses who meet the qualifying conditions for the special rate of grant will be eligible to have their post-graduate tuition fees paid up to the maximum fee limit under the Student Grant Scheme. Illness Benefit is considered to be a short-term payment and therefore it is not included as an eligible payment for the purposes of the special rates of maintenance grant.
Where an individual applicant has had an appeal turned down in writing by SUSI and remains of the view that the scheme has not been interpreted correctly in his/her case, an appeal form outlining the position may be submitted by the applicant to the independent Student Grant Appeals Board. The relevant appeal form will be available on request from SUSI.
93. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of appeals that have been made to Student Universal Support Ireland to date; the nature of those appeals; the length of time it takes on average to process same; if additional staff have been deployed to deal with appeals; the number of appeals that have been decided; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2168/13]
View answerAs at the 14th January, 2013 Student Universal Support Ireland received some 3,520 appeals. Of these decisions have been made on some 2,091 appeals. The nature of the appeals vary from applicant to applicant.
Appeals received by SUSI are dealt with in date order, and the waiting time for decisions on appeals can vary depending on the complexity of the grant applicants circumstances which are under appeal. SUSI aims to issue determinations on appeals as promptly as possible and within the 30 day timeframe defined in the Student Support Act, 2011.
Seven additional staff have recently been deployed, on a temporary basis, to process appeals.
94. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills when the appeal for a third level grant from Student Universal Support Ireland will be approved in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2180/13]
View answerOfficials in my Department have confirmed with Student Universal Support Ireland that in the case of the student referred to by the Deputy, her student grant application was appealed to the appeals officer in SUSI and the original decision was overturned.
On that basis, the application is currently being reassessed and the student will be notified directly of the outcome.
95. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Education and Skills when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo may expect a decision to be made on their higher education grant application; the reason the application has not yet been processed; if he will expedite the application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2235/13]
View answerOfficials in my Department have confirmed with Student Universal Support Ireland that the student referred to by the Deputy has been awarded a grant and an award letter issued on 20th December 2012.
96. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide by Department/Agency basis the number of persons who are seeking transfers to other locations; the number of transfers that took place in 2012 on a county basis on the number of transfers that took place in 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2747/13]
View answerAdministrative staff of this Department and it's Agencies applying for transfers to other locations, would primarily apply via the Central Applications Facility (CAF) which is maintained by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) or directly to the relevant Department for non CAF locations. As the "donating" Department, my Department would not be party to such transfer requests. Such information would be held by PAS and provided to the "receiving" Department on request. In respect of non-administrative staff in my Department, there are currently 25 staff on an internal lateral transfer list.
In 2012, 17 officers transferred out of my Department to other locations while 6 officers transferred into my Department from other locations. A further 10 officers transferred out of my Department within location while 5 officers transferred in within location. There were a further 6 internal transfers of staff between Department locations.
In respect of Agencies under the aegis of my Department:
In 2012, FÁS transferred 719.6 staff to the Department of Social Protection under a Government transfer of functions order. 4 FÁS staff were redeployed out. A further 141 staff were transferred internally both in and out of location.
The Teaching Council have no staff seeking transfers but had 4 staff members transfer in from other locations in 2012.
The National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI), the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) were amalgamated with the establishment of Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) resulting in the transfer of 80 staff to the new Agency.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) currently has 17 transfer requests and 1 transfer out of location took place in 2012.
97. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the attention of the Office of Public Works has been drawn to reports of serious erosion at the southern end of Inch spit, County Kerry; if the matter has been investigated or if it will investigated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2070/13]
View answerThe Office of Public Works OPW has not been made aware of reports on coastal erosion problems at the southern end of Inch Spit. Investigation of this matter would in the first instance be a matter for Kerry County Council.
It is open to the Council to apply for funding under the Minor Flood Mitigation Works and Coastal Protection Scheme. Any application received will be assessed under the revised eligibility criteria for coastal protection measures introduced by the OPW last year, which include a requirement that any measures are cost beneficial, and having regard to the overall availability of funding. Application forms and related guidelines are available on the OPW website.
The Office of Public Works has to date approved funding of €891,000 to Kerry County Council under the Minor Flood Mitigation Works & Coastal Protection Scheme.
98. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to floodlight the old monastery and church near the Hill of Skyrne, County Meath; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2106/13]
View answerThere are aesthetic and practical considerations involved in deciding whether floodlighting of particular sites is either feasible or appropriate. The nearby availability of a power source, cost, rural light pollution and the appropriateness of floodlighting isolated sites must all be taken into account. In many situations, floodlighting in an urban setting is feasible, while the same might not be true in a rural location.
It is the general policy of the Office of Public Works not to floodlight National Monuments sites in rural settings and this applies in the case of Skryne. OPW has not, in any event, received a request to floodlight this church.
99. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will outline the number of persons that are seeking re-deployment with the public appointment service broken down on a Department or agency basis; if he will outline who is eligible for redeployment under this system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2082/13]
View answerThe Public Service Agreement 2010-14 (Croke Park Agreement) provides for agreed redeployment arrangements to apply in the Civil Service and in other parts of the public service. Under the Agreement, redeployment generally takes precedence over all other methods of filling a vacancy and supersedes any existing agreements on the deployment of staff. It sets out the agreed redeployment arrangements within the Health, Education, and Local Authority sectors; and within and between the Civil Service and Non-commercial State Sponsored Bodies (NCSSB). It also provides that cross sectoral redeployments will follow the arrangements agreed for the NCSSBs.
The Public Appointments Service (PAS) has day-to-day operational responsibility for the implementation of redeployment and has put in place a system of Resource Panels of Civil Service and State Agency staff to support the redeployment processes in those sectors agreed under the Croke Park Agreement. Posts to be filled by redeployment are offered in the first instance to the relevant panel or panels. Full details of the protocols agreed with the staff unions in relation to the operation of those panels are set out in a “Redeployment Toolkit” which is available on my Department’s website at http://hr.per.gov.ie/redeployment/.
The Public Appointments Service (PAS) have advised my Department of the number of posts in the Civil Service and Non-commercial Semi State Bodies that had been notified to it for inclusion on the Redeployment Panels in December 2012 and details are set out below. It is a matter for the employer to identify the number and grades of posts to be redeployed in the first instance and to upload the posts onto the PAS panels. Employers can do this early in the redeployment process to maximise the opportunities to place their staff. There is no set time-limit within which individuals awaiting redeployment must be redeployed.
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Civil Service and NCSSB Resource Panels |
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Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine 54 |
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Department of Children & Youth Affairs 1 |
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Department of Defence 3 |
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Department of the Environment, Community & Local Government 9 |
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Department of Justice & Equality 1 |
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Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport 1 |
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An Bord Pleanála 1 |
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BIM 1 |
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Central Statistics Office 11 |
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Courts Service 3 |
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Defence – Civil 2 |
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Dublin Docklands Authority 12 |
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Dublin Tourism 1 |
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Fáilte Ireland 6 |
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FÁS 27 |
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Health & Safety Authority 15 |
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Legal Aid Board 3 |
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Local Government Computer Service Board 2 |
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National Building Agency 7 |
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National Council for Special Education 1 |
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National Treatment Purchase Fund 1 |
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Ordnance Survey Ireland 5 |
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Property Registration Authority 5 |
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Public Appointments Service 1 |
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Residential Redress Board 1 |
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Road Safety Authority 6 |
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Teagasc 69 |
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Valuation Office 2 |
Redeployment arrangements for the Education and Local Government sectors are managed separately by those sectors. However, to maximise the opportunities for the placement of staff and the filling of vacancies, the Education Sector has notified the PAS of 53 posts in that sector available for redeployment and the Local Authority has advised the PAS of 37 posts in that sector available for redeployment.
