Written Answers Nos. 167 - 173
167. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which adequate facilities remain available at a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40847/14]
View answerMy Department provides for a continuum of special educational provision to be made available for children with special educational needs, so that regardless of the level of need of the child, educational provision can be made for them.
The extent of supports required for any child in a particular class setting or school will depend on their disability categorisation and the extent of care needs that they may have. As such, schools have access to a full range of supports to facilitate the enrolment of pupils with special educational needs.
While there is not presently a distinct disability category of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) for resource allocation purposes, such children may be receiving supports in schools via their inclusion within other disability categorisations, such as mild general learning difficulty, or a low incidence disability categorisation, while also having ADHD.
Pupils with ADHD may receive additional teaching support either under the General Allocation Model in primary schools or equivalent provision in post primary schools if their educational assessments place them in the mild general learning disability category. Schools may differentiate the level of learning support granted to ensure that available resources are used to support children in line with their needs. Pupils who are diagnosed with EBD or more complex needs as defined by the Department's Circular Sp Ed 02/05, are supported through an allocation of individual additional resource teaching hours allocated by the National Council for Special Education.
The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs and additional care needs respectively. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support.
The NCSE has completed the second round allocations for resource teaching hours and SNA provision for the 2014/15 school year. Schools who wish to make applications for SNA support for children with special educational needs for the current school year may continue to make such applications to the NCSE.
School may also make applications to the NCSE for other special educational supports such as assistive technology and equipment and special transport arrangements for pupils with special educational needs.
All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO. Parents may also contact their local SENO directly to discuss their child's special educational needs, using the contact details available on www.ncse.ie.
168. Deputy Paul J. Connaughton asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a decision will be made regarding a Student Universal Support Ireland application in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Galway in view of the fact that all of the documents that the applicant has to prove independent residence have been furnished; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40889/14]
View answerAs part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage the assistance of their public representatives in making enquiries about their grant applications.
This service complements the established channels provided by SUSI which include online application tracking, a dedicated website, a telephone helpdesk, email and social media, including Facebook and Twitter.
Enquiries may be emailed direct to SUSI at oireachtas@susi.ie. SUSI are responding to email queries within a matter of days.
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 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 Grants Appeals Board.
169. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review a proposal (details supplied) for teacher training to help raise awareness among teachers of specific illnesses children may have, which need careful monitoring and attention during school hours; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40891/14]
View answerUnder the provisions of the Education Act 1998, the board of management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school. Schools are required to take all reasonable precautions to ensure the safety and welfare of their pupils.
It is important that the school management authority requests parents to ensure that the school is made aware of any medical condition suffered by any pupil attending. Where the school is aware of potential difficulties that may arise as a consequence of a medical condition suffered by one or more pupils, it may be possible for the management authorities, working in conjunction with the parents, teachers and children to put preventative measures in place to lessen the possibility of any difficulties arising or to ensure that, if a pupil suffers from an illness requiring medication, appropriate treatment is available.
As the Deputy may be aware, the administration of medicines in primary schools is the subject of an agreement between the Irish National Teachers Organisation and the organisations representing school management at primary level. While this agreement specifies that no teacher can be required to administer medicine or drugs to pupils, it also sets out procedures that must be followed where a teacher or teachers agree to do so.
I also 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, for children who have care needs to the extent that SNA support is required to assist them to attend school.
The Deputy may also wish to note that Kilkenny Education Centre and the Health and Safety Authority, together with my Department developed Guidelines on Managing Safety, Health and Welfare in Primary Schools which were launched earlier this year. The Guidelines are intended as a single comprehensive guidance document and toolkit that reflects current legislative requirements and best practice. The network of education centres offer seminars on the Guidelines by trained facilitators to school principals, teachers or members of boards of management who have a responsibility or interest in health and safety. Attendance at these seminars is not compulsory.
At pre-service level, the five State-funded colleges of education for primary teaching aim to prepare student teachers to meet the diverse needs of all their pupils. The issue of medical conditions is covered during primary initial teacher education in lectures dealing with preparation for school placement.
170. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide the details of the number of employees of Irish Water who will receive bonuses in 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40784/14]
View answer178. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will abolish bonuses being paid to Irish Water staff of up to 19%; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40821/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 170 and 178 together.
Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels.
The employment terms and conditions for Irish Water staff are a matter for the company and I understand that the particular pay model is something which was inherited from the parent company Ervia and therefore was not directly put in place by Irish Water. Like other commercial semi-state bodies, pay models are negotiated between management and unions and are then subject to a ballot as necessary. This occurred in Ervia’s case and the pay model was implemented in 2011.
This involves a competitive market based pay model, which offers market based pay ranges for all employees, including a pay at risk element called Performance Related Award (PRA). A pay freeze will remain in place until 2016 as this is a key element of reducing overall payroll costs within the Group. As such, Irish Water does not pay increments or any form of automatic pay award; the pay model applied allows for part of salaries to be placed at risk and this element of pay is only earned subject to performance. Every individual in Irish Water has a clear set of objectives set for the year and a set of metrics against which performance is measured.
Irish Water has indicated to my Department that the maximum PRA element of pay ranges from 2.75% to 15%. While I understand that the Ervia pay model allows for a further 4% performance-related award to be made in circumstances of exceptional performance, entirely at the discretion of the Board, I am assured by Ervia that the maximum percentages to be applied in Irish Water will be as set out in the range provided above. Furthermore, no decision has been made in relation to the payment of any PRAs in Irish Water at this time.
The Government will shortly consider proposals to establish a unified board arrangement for Ervia and Irish Water. One of the first actions that I will be asking the new Board to take will be to review the application and operation of the pay model outlined above in Irish Water, particularly in its start-up phase.
Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. They may be contacted via email at oireachtasmembers@water.ie or by telephone on 1890 278 278.
171. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide in tabular form the annual number of vehicles on the road; and the figure numerically and per capita. [40707/14]
View answerThe number of vehicles under current motor taxation at 30 September 2014 was 2,503,300. Details of the numbers of vehicles under current taxation in previous years can be found in Table 1, Part 1 of the Irish Bulletin of Vehicle and Driver Statistics 2013. The Statistics Bulletin is published annually by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and is available on the Department’s website at :http://www.transport.ie/roads/publications/english/irish-bulletin-vehicle-and-driver-statistics-2013.
My Department does not compile statistics on the number of vehicles on the road per capita. Population data is, however, available on the website of the Central Statistics Office at http://www.cso.ie/en/statistics/population.
172. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the reason there is no emergency number for Irish Water; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40728/14]
View answer173. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the way a customer contacts Irish Water in the case of an emergency as a person (details supplied) in County Dublin had no water and could not contact Irish Water; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40730/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 172 and 173 together.
Irish Water has established a customer support call centre which is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This call centre is designed for reporting of any faults in water services and assisting customers with any queries related to water services. If a householder experiences an interruption to the water supply to their house, they are asked to contact Irish Water’s customer contact centre at 1890 278 278. The call centre is also contactable on the national number 01 707 2828. Irish Water will then engage with the customer to find out the source of the interruption. If it is linked to an occurrence on the public infrastructure, this will be explained to the customer over the course of the call and the expected time for the full resumption of service will be provided. Irish Water has set up a system of outage notifications with each of the local authorities and this information is also available to customers on the Irish Water website at http://www.water.ie/help-centre/service-updates/.
Where there is an unplanned outage on the public infrastructure, the local authority, working as agents of Irish Water, will also send information notices to local radio stations, send out SMS text alerts to registered users, and update their websites with the information.
Not all household supply interruptions are related to an occurrence on the public infrastructure. In some cases, a further investigation is needed and, in this instance, Irish Water will arrange a call out by the relevant local authority, working on behalf of Irish Water, to the location provided.
The customer contact centre line (1890 278 278) is not currently experiencing any delays. A separate number, 1890 448 448, has been established to assist, in a dedicated way, with queries about, and completion of, the new customer application form, and is open from 8am to 8pm, 7 days a week for this purpose. Irish Water can also be contacted by email and the application form can also be completed on line. All details are clearly outlined on the company website, www.water.ie.
Irish Water has indicated that if the person in question contacts the customer contact centre directly, the company will endeavour to investigate the matter further.
Irish Water has also established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. They may be contacted via email to oireachtasmembers@water.ie or by telephone on 1890 278 278.
