Written Answers Nos. 400-417
400. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on whether the lack of grant support for living costs for postgraduate students prevents some persons from undertaking postgraduate studies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38427/13]
View answerThe Deputy would be aware that affordability is just one of the factors that impact on students continued participation in higher education. There are a range of wider factors that also impact on participation, including social and cultural issues, prior academic attainment and teacher and parental expectations. In access terms, the requirement to pay a fee is considered to be a greater obstacle to entry than lack of maintenance support at postgraduate level. This is why I opted to maintain the fee-payment ahead of maintenance payments for postgraduate students. Students 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 of €6,270. A postgraduate student may qualify to have a €2,000 contribution made towards the cost of their fees. The income threshold for this payment is €31,500 for the 2013/14 academic year, increasing relative to the number of family dependents. In addition the Student Assistance Fund will continue to be made available through the access offices of third-level institutions to assist students in exceptional financial need.
401. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of students that were provided with grants for postgraduate studies for the college year 2012-2013; the amount that was spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38433/13]
View answerInformation supplied to my Department by the grant awarding authorities in the 2012/13 annual statistical return indicates that there were some 3,800 postgraduate students in receipt of a student grant at a cost of some €14.5 million in the 2012/13 academic year. These figures include new and renewal postgraduate students and have been supplied to my Department by the grant awarding authorities (local authorities, Vocational Education Committees and Student Universal Support Ireland). In the context of the necessary but difficult expenditure reduction measures announced in Budget 2012, new students entering postgraduate courses from the 2012/13 academic year onwards will not be entitled to maintenance payments under the Student Grant Scheme. Those who meet the qualifying conditions for the special rate of grant under the Student Grant Scheme are eligible to have their post-graduate tuition fees paid up to the maximum fee limit of €6,270. A postgraduate student may qualify to have a €2,000 contribution made towards the costs of their fees. The income threshold for this payment is €31,500 for the 2013/14 academic year, increasing relative to the number of family dependents. Tax relief is also available on postgraduate tuition fees. Details in relation to this relief are available from the Revenue Commissioners. In addition to this, the Student Assistance Fund will continue to be made available through the access offices of third-level institutions to assist students in exceptional financial need.
403. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason membership of the special needs assistant supplementary assignment panel is restricted to SNAs who were made redundant after 1 May 2013 in view of the large number of SNAs that were made redundant in 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38528/13]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, a new set of proposals for a public service agreement were put forward by the Labour Relations Commission which now form the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013-2016 (the Haddington Road Agreement). One aspect of this Agreement relates to supplementary assignment arrangements for Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) and as both Unions that represent SNAs namely, SIPTU and IMPACT, have signed up to the Haddington Road Agreement, the Department has now implemented supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs for the 2013/2014 school year.
The detailed arrangements are set out in Departmental Circular 0037/2013 which issued on 1 July 2013 and which is available on the Department's website at the following address: http://www.education.ie/en/Circulars-and-Forms/Active-Circulars/cl0037_2013.pdf.
The first part of the LRC proposals for supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs outlines that the supplementary assignment arrangements only apply to current SNAs who are notified that they are to be made redundant.
Accordingly, with effect from 1 May 2013 once an SNA with a minimum of one year's service is notified by his/her employer that he/she is to be made redundant then he/she shall be deemed to be a member of a Supplementary Assignment Panel for SNAs.
I can inform the Deputy that the 1st of May date was set in Circular 0037/2013 in order to ensure that the overwhelming majority of SNAs who worked in schools during the past year would be eligible for the supplementary assignment arrangements, as agreed to in the LRC proposals.
As the LRC proposals are part of a wider public-sector pay agreement that represent compromises by both employers and unions, I do not have the ability to alter the terms of that agreement.
404. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Education and Skills when funding will be approved for a school (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38529/13]
View answerIn February 2012, the school referred to by the Deputy was allocated devolved funding under my Department's Additional Accommodation Scheme for the provision of three new mainstream classrooms to cater for expected growth in pupil numbers and one new mainstream classroom to replace an existing prefab classroom. The School Authority has proposed delivering these four classrooms in two phases with the delivery of Phase 2 being dependant upon expected growth in pupil numbers and improvements to the local sewerage scheme.
405. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on whether the numbers of voluntary amalgamations will increase as a result of the increases in pupil enrolment thresholds for the retention of teaching posts in two, three and four teacher rural schools; if he will explore the option of savings via shared services between rural schools (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38539/13]
View answerAs part of the Budget 2012 decisions, there is a phased increase in the number of pupils required to gain and retain a classroom teaching post in small primary schools. The phasing of these measures can provide the schools concerned with time to consider the potential for amalgamation with other schools where this is feasible. I made clear at the time that if amalgamations take place as a result of this budget decision, they will be voluntary and follow decisions taken by local communities and not by my Department. The Deputy has also raised questions about the scope for schools to work together via shared savings to achieve savings. I believe it is important that we do whatever we can to harnessing the purchasing power of all schools to help reduce costs for individual schools. A key government priority is to substantially reduce costs and achieve better Value for Money (VFM) through reforming public procurement. As part of this reform the Office of Government Procurement is being established to centralise procurement across the public service and this has potential to reduce costs including also for schools.
406. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to include Down syndrome in the list of low incidence complex disorders that will enable children with Down syndrome to receive special assistance in mainstream classrooms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38559/13]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that pupils with Down Syndrome attending mainstream schools may receive additional teaching support in primary schools, either under the terms of the General Allocation Model (GAM) of teaching supports, if the pupil's educational psychological assessment places the pupil in the mild general learning disability/high incidence disability category, or through an allocation of individual additional resource teaching hours which are allocated by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), if the child is assessed as being within the low incidence category of special need, as defined by my Department's Circular Sp Ed 02/05. Pupils with Down Syndrome may therefore be allocated resources under the category of mild general learning disability, or under the categories of moderate general learning difficulty or Assessed Syndrome, in conjunction with another Low Incidence disability. Regardless of the manner in which the resource hours are allocated to schools, resource teaching/learning support is available for pupils with Down syndrome. The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) has a formal role under the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act, 2004 in advising me in relation to any matter relating to the education of children and others with disabilities. My Department requested that the NCSE consider the issue of whether Down Syndrome should be reclassified as a low incidence disability in all instances, regardless of assessed cognitive ability, in the context of its preparation of comprehensive advice on how the educational system supports children with special educational needs in schools. The NCSE report on Supporting Children with Special Educational Needs in Schools has now been published and is available on the NCSE website www.ncse.ie. The report recommends that under the new resource allocation model proposed by the NCSE in its report, children should be allocated additional resources in line with their level of need, rather than by disability category. The NCSE has recommended that in the short-term, pupils with Down Syndrome who are in the Mild General Learning Disability (Mild GLD) category should continue to be supported by schools' Learning Support allocation in the same way as other pupils with a Mild GLD. The NCSE policy advice did not recommend that an exception should be made for children with Down Syndrome who are in the Mild GLD range, over other children who are in the mild range and who also may have other co-morbid conditions. However, the NCSE report states that it is confident that the introduction of a new allocation model will overcome the difficulty posed by all children with mild general learning disabilities, including children with Down Syndrome, who have additional difficulties and who can be supported according to their level of need and in line with their learning plan process. In the meantime, schools are reminded that they can differentiate the level of learning support granted to ensure that available resources are used to support children in line with their needs. I have requested the NCSE to immediately proceed to establish a Working Group in order to develop a proposal for consideration for a new Tailored Allocation Model, which is set out as one of the principal recommendations of the report.
Question No. 407 answered with Question No. 324.
Question No. 408 answered with Question No. 343.
Question No. 409 answered with Question No. 324.
410. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will review the refusal of a grant application in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38591/13]
View answerOfficials in my Department have confirmed with Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) that the student referred to by the Deputy was issued with a letter on 21st August 2013 advising him that he was ineligible to receive a grant. If an individual applicant considers that she/he has been unjustly refused a student grant, or that the rate of grant awarded is not the correct one, she/he may appeal, in the first instance, to SUSI. Where an individual applicant has had an appeal turned down, in writing, by SUSI, and remains of the view that SUSI has not interpreted the scheme correctly in his/her case, an appeal form outlining the position may be submitted by the applicant to the Student Grant Appeals Board. The relevant appeal form will be available on request from SUSI.
412. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will supply the details of the contact person in his Department that deals with children at risk (details supplied). [38615/13]
View answerIf you feel that there is a Child Protection issue you should bring the concern to the attention of the Designated Liaison Person (DLP) or Principal of the school. The DLP is responsible for making the report to the HSE. You may wish to contact the HSE Children and Family Services directly as the relevant statutory authority with responsibility for Child Protection. The HSE social workers contact details for your area can be found on their website at www.hse.ie/go/socialworkers. All schools are required to adhere to Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools which give direction and guidance to school authorities and school personnel in the implementation of Children First when dealing with allegations/suspicions of child abuse. In accordance with these procedures it is the responsibility of all Boards of Management to designate a senior full-time member of staff as the DLP for the school. It is expected that the DLP will normally be the Principal. The DLP is responsible for ensuring that the standard reporting procedure is followed so that suspected cases of child abuse are referred promptly to the HSE or An Garda Síochána. The procedures provide that in any case where the allegation or concern relates to the DLP, the matter must be reported to the Chairperson of the Board who in turn is required to adhere to the relevant procedures for dealing with same. Alternatively, there is a desiginated Child Protection unit within my Department to which you can report your concern. It may be contacted by telephoning (090) 648 4099 or by emailing childprotection@education.gov.ie. Any allegation of a child protection nature received by staff in my Department is dealt with in accordance with the Department's internal Procedures for responding to Child Protection Concerns brought to the attention of staff employed by the Department of Education and Skills. Under these procedures the department does not make any judgment on the concerns brought to its attention and ensures that the details of the concern reported to the department are immediately passed on to the relevant investigatory authorities, including the relevant school authorities, the Health Service Executive and/or An Garda Síochána. The department cannot guarantee confidentiality to complainants in such circumstances as the information it receives must be passed on to the relevant authorities for investigation, including any details of the person reporting the concern.
413. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will confirm that there is a register of special needs assistants applying for an SNA position in a school; and if this exists, if he will provide the contact details concerning the person responsible for this register. [38616/13]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, a new set of proposals for a public service agreement were put forward by the Labour Relations Commission which now form the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013-2016 (the Haddington Road Agreement). One aspect of this Agreement relates to supplementary assignment arrangements for Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) and as both Unions that represent SNAs namely, SIPTU and IMPACT, have signed up to the Haddington Road Agreement, the Department has implemented supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs for the 2013/2014 school year.
The detailed arrangements are set out in Departmental Circular 0037/2013 which issued on 1 July 2013 and which is available on the Department's website at the following address: http://www.education.ie/en/Circulars-and-Forms/Active-Circulars/cl0037_2013.pdf.
With effect from 1 May 2013 once an SNA with a minimum of one year's service is notified by his/her employer that he/she is to be made redundant then he/she shall be deemed to be a member of a Supplementary Assignment Panel for SNAs.
For the 2013/2014 school year a list of SNAs who have been deemed to be members of the Supplementary Assignment Panel will not be made or kept by the Department of Education and Skills. The operation of this panel is as described and outlined in Circular 0037/2013. This enables all eligible SNAs, who have the requisite SUPPLEMENTARY ASSIGNMENT PANEL FORM 2013/2014 completed by their former employer, to apply for any SNA position that is advertised by a school or an ETB with no geographical limitations imposed.
The Department has set out up a dedicated e-mail address to deal with all queries in relation to the SNA Supplementary Assignment Panel and any queries in respect of the operation of the Panel can be directed to this dedicated e-mail address snasupplementpanel@education.gov.ie.
414. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will support an initiative (details supplied) regarding bullying for 2013-2014 [38617/13]
View answerMy Department has received a proposal from the organisation referred to by the Deputy and this is currently being considered.
415. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to include a provision in Budget 2014 for the continued education and structured environment for severely disable children over 18 years of age; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38620/13]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that considerations in relation to Budget 2014 are ongoing and I am therefore not in a position to anticipate any future decisions in this regard. The Deputy will be aware, however, that this Government is committed to the protection of frontline services for pupils with special educational needs. The level of resources devoted to supporting children with Special Educational Needs has been maintained at €1.3 billion this year. This includes provision for 10,575 Special Needs Assistants (SNAs), nearly 10,000 Learning Support and Resource Teachers, provision for over 730 Special Classes attached to mainstream schools at reduced pupil teacher ratios, enhanced capitation for special schools and special classes and provision for assistive technology support. The Deputy will also be aware that the Department of Health and Children/Health Service Executive assumes direct responsibility for young adults with special educational needs who are over 18 years. My Department may allocate funding towards an educational component of such provision. This is generally transacted through the co-operation hours scheme operated by Vocational Education Committees (VECs) where the local service provider makes application to the relevant VEC for tuition hours. My Department also provides funding to the National Learning Network for this purpose. As such, students can continue to participate in educational programmes through further adult educational programmes or in adult settings. Young adults with disabilities are also eligible to access FÁS mainstream services. For 2013, the FÁS budget includes a provision for €52m which will support around 3,300 specialist vocational training places for people with disabilities, who do not avail of the mainstream options, through Specialist Training Providers (STPs). Learners on Specialist Training programmes have the opportunity to participate in training ranging from FETAC level 3 to level 5 on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ). All training programmes delivered through these interventions address both the generic and vocational skills requirements of participating learners. Specialist training offers additional supports to learners which include individualised training and progression plans, literacy and numeracy support, longer training duration, adapted equipment, transport arrangements, enhanced programme content and enhanced trainer/learner ratio. The Disability Access Route to Education (DARE) scheme also provides a third level admissions scheme for school leavers who have a disability or specific learning difficulty. Students who are considered to be DARE eligible may secure a college place on a reduced points basis. Details of the DARE scheme are available at www. accesscollege.ie. Additional supports for young adults with special educational needs are also provided by Disability Officers in third level colleges.
416. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will clarify the changes in the primary school transport scheme that have commenced in September 2013 as they relate to closed schools and or central schools; if he will clarify that persons resident more than 3.2 km from their nearest school are still entitled to transport on a priority basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38621/13]
View answerChanges to the School Transport Schemes, including the 'Closed School Rule (CSR)', were announced in Budget 2011 and derived from recommendations in the Value for Money Review of the Scheme. From the commencement of the 2011/12 school year the distance eligibility criterion of 3.2 kilometres was applied nationally to all children travelling under the primary school transport scheme, including those travelling under the CSR. The second element of the change which took effect from the commencement of the 2012/13 school year applied only in the case of children commencing their primary education from that date. This second element restricted eligibility for school transport to those children who meet the distance eligibility criterion and are travelling to their nearest school. Children who were eligible for school transport and who are availing of school transport services, will retain their eligibility for the duration of their primary education cycle provided there is no change in their current circumstances.
417. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding catchment areas for schools (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38625/13]
View answerIt is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. In this regard a board of management may find it necessary to restrict enrolment to children from a particular area or a particular age group or, occasionally, on the basis of some other criterion. This selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. Section 29 of the Education Act 1998, provides parents with an appeal process where a board of management of a school or a person acting on behalf of the Board refuses enrolment to a student. Where a school refuses to enrol a pupil, the school is obliged to inform parents of their right under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998 to appeal that decision to either the relevant Vocational Educational Committee or to the Secretary General of my Department. The National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) is the statutory agency which can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. The Board can be contacted at National Educational Welfare Board, National Headquarters, 16-22 Green Street, Dublin 7 or by telephone at 01-8738700. As the Deputy will be aware, I recently published a draft General Scheme for an Education (Admission to Schools) Bill, 2013 as well as draft regulations for discussion ahead of enacting legislation. I have referred the draft General Scheme and draft regulations to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection, to allow a full public discussion of the proposed legislative framework, including inputs from parents and the education partners. I hope the Committee will give this early consideration so that we can proceed to the next stage of legislation as soon as possible.
