Written Answers Nos. 434-451
434. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to reinstate the minor works grant scheme; if her attention has been drawn to the negative impacts for many schools as a result of its loss. [35279/14]
View answerCircular Letter 0062/2013 which was published as the Minor Works Grant for the school year 2013/2014 issued last November states "the grant will only be paid in future years as funding permits". The focus under the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme 2012-2016 is on meeting the demand for additional school places. Consequently, there is no funding provided at this time in the 2014 capital allocation for the payment of a Minor Works Grant.
I know that whenever my Department is in a position to issue a Minor Works Grant that it is welcomed by school communities and management bodies as a valuable contribution towards the cost of maintaining school infrastructure.
435. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will include a school's building project (details supplied) on the capital programme as part of budget 2015. [35311/14]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the delivery of major school projects required to meet demographic demand will be the main focus for capital investment in the coming years. The Five Year Plan prioritises new school building projects as well as major extensions in areas where a demographic need has been established. Stranorlar, where the school referred to is located, has not been identified by the Department as an area of significant demographic growth. A project for the school was not, therefore, included in the Five Year Plan.
Notwithstanding that Stranorlar has not been identified as an area of growth, a new site for the proposed new school was completed some time ago. A project brief was prepared and the project has been advanced into the architectural planning process. School building projects, including the project for the school referred to, which have not been included in the five year construction programme, but which were announced for initial inclusion in the building programme will be ready to be progressed to the final planning stages in anticipation of the possibility of further funds being available to the Department in future years.
436. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of fee paying post-primary schools that have become free schools each year since 2010/11; the estimated cost of this to her Department in each year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35321/14]
View answerFive fee-charging schools have joined the Free Education Scheme since 2010/11. The estimated cost to the Department, as requested by the Deputy, is not readily available. My officials are currently compiling this information and it will be forwarded to the Deputy in due course.
437. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated annual cost of increasing the number of primary school teachers by 10%; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35323/14]
View answer438. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated annual cost of increasing the number of secondary school teachers by 10%; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35324/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 437 and 438 together.
The indicative annual cost to teacher salaries of increasing the number of primary school teachers by 10% is estimated to be over €150 m. At post primary level the indicative cost to teacher salaries is estimated to be of the order of €110 m.
Any proposed increase in the number of teaching posts in schools will also give rise to associated capital costs relating to school accommodation. Such an adjustment will likely result in an increase in applications from schools particularly under my Department's Additional Accommodation Scheme. Under this scheme, my Department assesses applications for funding to meet an immediate accommodation requirement, because of increased enrolments or where an additional teacher has been appointed.
My Department, like all other Government Departments, is operating within a budgetary programme that is designed to return the Government finances to a sustainable basis. This budgetary programme has helped Ireland to return to a position where we are seeing some economic growth. It is a continuing improvement in our economic growth that will enable us to move to a point in future budgets where we can look again at providing for additional teacher resources in schools which could bring about an improvement in PTR, class size and support for classroom teachers.
In the meantime, my Department's focus is on targeting any available resources to cater for the continued increase in student numbers across primary, post-primary and third level.
439. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated annual cost of introducing 0% loans for all third level students, which are repayable when graduate salaries rise above the average industrial wage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35325/14]
View answerThe costs associated with the abolition of fees and introduction of a loan system would be dependent on varying factors including administrative costs of a loan scheme and tuition costs associated with type study i.e. full-time or part-time, undergraduate or post-graduate, varying fees associated with different course types and higher fees for international students.
The position is that the Exchequer meets the cost of tuition fees, through my Department's free fees schemes, in respect of eligible full-time undergraduate students. It is estimated that some 129,200 students qualified for free fees in the 2013/14 academic year at a cost of some €310 m. Students who qualify for free fees must pay a student contribution of €2,750 directly to their higher education institution. Some 50% of students who qualify for free fees have the student contribution paid on their behalf by the Exchequer under my Department's Student Grant Scheme which is estimated to have cost some €126 m for the 2013/14 academic year. Students who do not qualify for free fees must pay the appropriate fee level, as determined by the higher education institutions.
The Deputy may be aware that the question of introducing fees allied to an income contingent loan scheme has been identified previously, including in the Hunt report, as a means of addressing future funding issues in the sector while retaining free access at the point of entry. A technical report on options for the development of such a scheme was developed by my Department in 2009 and is published on my Department's website.
440. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated annual cost of doubling funding to the National Adult Literacy Agency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35326/14]
View answerThe current level of funding allocated to the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) is €1.7 million. The cost of doubling this funding would bring the total cost to €3.4 million. SOLAS, the new further education and training authority, has responsibility for all funding for the further education and training sector, including NALA.
441. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated annual cost of doubling funding of adult literacy schemes, run by VECs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35327/14]
View answerA total of €26.5 million was allocated in 2014 to Education and Training Boards (ETBs) under the Adult Literacy programme. The cost of doubling this allocation would increase the total cost to €53 million. An additional €2.8 million was allocated to ETBs under the Workplace Basic Education Programme, funded from the National Training Fund, which provides literacy and numeracy tuition to people in the workplace. The cost of doubling this allocation would bring the total cost to €5.6 million.
The funding of these schemes comes within the remit of SOLAS, the Further Education and Training Authority. It will be a matter for SOLAS to address funding arrangements for these schemes as part of implementing Government policy through the annual service plan process undertaken by it with the ETBs.
442. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills when a reply will be provided to this Deputy's correspondence regarding a school transport issue (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35348/14]
View answerChanges to the School Transport Scheme have generated an increase in the number of queries and representations to my Department and when combined with the routine administrative work undertaken within my Department in relation to school transport provision generally, regrettably, it was not feasible to deal with the increased volume of representations in a more timely manner.
Under the terms of my Department's Post Primary School Transport Scheme, children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest education centre as determined by my Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language. Bus Éireann has advised that the family in question are not attending their nearest school and therefore are not eligible for school transport. However, as one child had been incorrectly categorised as eligible, she can continue to avail of school transport under the current arrangements for the remainder of the 2014/15 school year. The second child in question may only avail of transport on a concessionary basis and in this regard the family should liaise with their local Bus Éireann office in Stranorlar which can be contacted at 074-9131008 or by e-mail at schools.stranorlar@buseireann.ie.
While it is the prerogative of parents to send their children to the school of their choice, eligibility for school transport is to the nearest school. The terms of the School Transport Schemes are applied equitably on a national basis.
443. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to replace the prefabs at a school (detailed supplied) with permanent accommodation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35475/14]
View answer462. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 213 of 17 July 2014, if she will review the status of this project in view of the fact that the catchment population has increased by nearly 40% between censuses and the school population has trebled in the last nine years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35753/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 443 and 462 together.
The catchment area for the school referred to by the Deputies has been identified by my Department as an area requiring increased accommodation to meet demographic demand over the period between now and 2019. A major school building extension project has already being announced and is being progressed as part of my Department's Five Year Construction Plan to meet this demand. In that regard, my Department is continuing to monitor enrolments in the area.
An additional project is also being progressed through the Department's architectural planning process in respect of the school referred to by the Deputies. This project has reached an advanced stage of Architectural Planning, - Stage 2(b) - which includes securing Planning Permission, Fire Certificate, Disability Access Certificate and the preparation of tender documents. All relevant statutory approvals have been obtained and the Design Team are currently working on the preparation of the tender documentation. The Design Team expect to be in a position to submit the Stage 2(b) report to the Department for review in the coming weeks. Whilst, it is not possible to progress all projects within the Department's building programme to construction concurrently due to competing demands on my Department's capital budget, the project in question is now well placed to progress to tender and construction in the event that further funding becomes available to my Department in the future.
444. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding education fees in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35477/14]
View answerNew students entering postgraduate courses from the 2012/13 academic year onwards are not 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 2014/15 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. I have no plans at present to change the current arrangements.
445. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for funding from a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; the status of the application; when a decision will be reached; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35487/14]
View answer458. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for funding in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; the status of the application; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35688/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 445 and 458 together.
I can confirm that the school to which the Deputy refers has applied to my Department for large scale capital funding to provide a new PE Hall.
In view of the financial constraints imposed by the need, as outlined in the Five Year Plan, to prioritise available funding for the provision of essential teaching accommodation to meet demographic demand, the Deputy will appreciate that it is not possible to provide an indicative timeframe at this time for the progression of the proposed project.
446. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for funding from a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; the status of the application; when a decision will be reached; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35489/14]
View answer459. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for funding in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; the status of the application; when a decision will be reached; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35690/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 446 and 459 together.
The building project at the school to which the Deputy refers started on site in July 2013 with an 18 month contract. It is envisaged that the project will be complete in early 2015.
447. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Education and Skills her views on abolishing the student services charge imposed on apprentices training in institutes of technology; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35494/14]
View answerThe Annual Student Contribution is levied on students attending Institutes of Technology (IoTs). The amount due by apprentices is calculated on a pro rata basis of the time which they spend in Institutes of Technology during the academic year.
Since 2004, FÁS/SOLAS has paid a part of the Annual Student Contribution due in respect of apprentices, with apprentices themselves paying the part of the contribution relating to examination fees. As part of Budget 2014, SOLAS have ceased making payments to Institutes of Technology and apprentices pay the full pro rata Annual Student Contribution.
From January 2014 up to the end of the academic year in June, apprentices paid €833 (1/3 of €2,500) per typical attendance block although a small number of apprentices paid more for longer blocks. These arrangements mean that apprentices are treated the same as students in IoTs in terms of the annual student contribution. Apprentices had already been paying €233 (28% of €833) in respect of the exam fee element of the ASC. However, unlike full-time students, apprentices are paid a training allowance by SOLAS for phases of their training spent in IoTs. This allowance ranges from €293 to €647 per week depending on the trade and phase of the apprenticeship programme. This is the equivalent to their net take-home pay on the job, and is not subject to tax or PRSI. Such allowances are not available to students in the IoTs.
The Budget 2014 decision was taken in the context of the difficult economic circumstances the country is in and the overall savings that my Department had to find in 2014. There is no scope to revisit the measure. I am deeply committed to supporting apprenticeship training in Ireland, both through the renewal of existing apprenticeships and the extension of the apprenticeship model to new areas. I will be focused on delivering in accordance with the Implementation Plan recently published to take forward the recommendations of the recent independent review of apprenticeship training in Ireland.
448. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding assistive technology in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry. [35535/14]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department provides funding to schools towards the cost of assistive technology for pupils in Primary, Post Primary and Special schools for personal computers and specialist software for educational purposes under the Assistive Technology scheme, as set out in my Department's Circular 0010/2013.
An application for assistive technology support for the child referred to by the Deputy, has been received in my Department. Further information has also now recently been received from the school to support this application. The application is now under consideration and a determination will shortly be issued to the school.
449. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills her views on the financial pressure being placed on students due to the increased amount of time they must spend in the Gaeltacht in order to qualify as a teacher; and her plans to address this. [35548/14]
View answer450. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the guidelines setting out the standards that the Gaeltacht programme for students undertaking primary education degrees must adhere to; the avenues open to students if they feel that the programmes to which they are sent are not meeting the standards. [35549/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 449 and 450 together.
Changes to the structure and content of the Gaeltacht Placement arose from the Teaching Council's new accreditation criteria, published in June 2011 (Initial Teacher Education: Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers) which provide, inter alia, for "an extended and reconceptualised Gaeltacht residency which will now form part of the overall programme and be under the direct jurisdiction of the teacher education providers."
The Teaching Council established a Gaeltacht Placement Working Group and published a report in May 2012 which, among other things, provides for the placement duration to be extended to take place in two blocks of two weeks and a common course content across all initial teacher education providers. Initial teacher education providers have responsibility for quality assuring the content, teaching and assessment of the Gaeltacht element of initial teacher education programmes. Any concerns in this regard should be taken up directly with the provider in the first instance and/or the Council. My Department supports the changes as contributing to overall quality improvement in initial teacher education.
I can appreciate that supporting a student through third level education can be challenging. The decision to abolish the grants was not taken lightly, and it has to be viewed in the context of the prevailing requirement to reduce costs and achieve efficiencies where possible. In making difficult decisions such as this, priority was given to protecting resources for front line education services as far as possible, which is especially challenging with rising numbers of school-going children. The changes to the Gaeltacht placement grant were publicised in advance of implementation so that students would be aware of the new arrangements before embarking on Initial Teacher Education programmes.
To assist with the costs of the Gaeltacht placement, students who are in receipt of a student grant which includes a 100% fee grant, or who would have qualified for a full fee grant but for the Free Fees Schemes, can apply for funding towards travel and accommodation costs under the field trip element of a fee grant, subject to the normal terms and conditions of the scheme. Apart from the student grant system, in circumstances of particular need students may apply for support under the Student Assistance Fund. Information in relation to this fund is available through the Access Officer in the third-level institution attended.
451. Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason a special transport grant has not been granted to a person (details supplied) in County Offaly to attend a school which has a special sensory room. [35575/14]
View answerUnder the terms of my Department's School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, children are eligible for transport where they are attending the nearest recognised school that is or can be resourced to meet their special educational needs.
The National Council for Special Education through its network of Special Education Needs Organisers (SENOs) acts in an advisory role to my Department on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs. The school this child is attending is not the nearest school resourced to meet his educational needs and therefore he is not eligible for school transport to this school and therefore the payment of a school transport grant does not arise. While it is the prerogative of parents to send their children to the school of their choice, eligibility for school transport is to the nearest school.
Children who are not eligible for school transport may apply for transport on a concessionary basis subject to a number of terms and conditions including the availability of spare seats on an existing service and the payment of the annual charge. The parents of this child should liaise with their local Bus Éireann office regarding the availability of transport on a concessionary basis for the 2014/15 school year. The local Bus Éireann office in Athlone can be contacted at 09064-73277 or by e-mail at schools.athlone@buseireann.ie.
