Written Answers Nos. 210-219
210. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the most sought after skills in the modern workplace; the degree to which such skills requirements are being met; the degree to which it is expected to address any skill shortages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6554/15]
View answerMeeting the requirements of industry is a high priority for the education system and a wide ranging programme of reform is currently being rolled out across all levels of the system to ensure the continued development of skills appropriate to enterprise My Department has a number of strategies and initiatives in place to ensure that further education and training meets the skills requirements of the workplace. SOLAS with the assistance of relevant experts such as the ESRI, employers and local and national organisations have published a five year strategy for the further education and training sector which provides us with a strategic roadmap for this crucial element of the education and training system. The strategy includes a vision of a flexible, quality-driven, labour market-relevant, integrated and responsive sector that supports learner progression, transitions into employment and personal development. One of the core objectives under the new Performance Framework for the higher education system is meeting Ireland's human capital needs across the spectrum of skills areas through both core funding and specifically targeted initiatives. Higher Education institutions also engage with enterprise at a local level with a view to the development of programmes tailored to local enterprise needs as well as arranging appropriate work placements etc. The Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN) is funded by my Department advises the Irish Government on current and future skills needs of the economy. It has a central role in ensuring that labour market needs for skilled workers are anticipated and met. The expert group's membership is broad and specifically includes representation from enterprise. Its research provides an input to the development of course curricula and informs the selection of new targeted programmes designed to tackle the skills shortages in particular elements of the economy, such as Momentum, Springboard and the ICT skills conversion programme. A new call for Springboard 2015, to include the ICT skills conversion programme, issued on the 28th January. A guidance document, prepared by EGFSN, on current and future skills needs of enterprise accompanied the call. The skills needs of enterprise identified for course proposals under Springboard 2015 are in areas such as ICT, Manufacturing, Skills to Trade Internationally, Entrepreneurship, Freight Transport, Distribution and Logistics and International Financial Services.
The first National Employers Survey which was undertaken in 2012, by the HEA and IBEC showed that 75% of employers expressed confidence that graduates have the right workplace and transferable skills and the relevant knowledge in their subject and discipline. The second round of this survey was carried out during 2014 by the HEA and SOLAS. The results of the second National Employers Survey will be published shortly. As part of the Action Plan for Jobs 2015, my Department has committed to develop a new National Skills Strategy. The development of the strategy will provide an opportunity to determine the volume, type and mix of skills required to meet the Government's goal of full employment by 2018 and the challenges to be addressed to achieve this.
211. Deputy Andrew Doyle asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason the planning application for a new school build (details supplied) in County Wicklow has not been lodged; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6352/15]
View answerThe preliminary stage of seeking planning for the school to which the Deputy refers has begun with the erection of the site notices for an access road to the site. The planning application for the school proper should follow shortly.
212. Deputy Noel Harrington asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will confirm that she has received an application for emergency works to a national school (details supplied) in County Cork; when this application will be processed, and when will the decision be communicated to the Board of Management [6353/15]
View answerI am pleased to inform the Deputy that funding under my Department's Emergency Works Scheme has recently been approved for the school in question to carry out roof repairs. The school authority have been informed of this decision.
213. Deputy Michael McCarthy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will insist on the teaching posts being maintained at a school (details supplied) in County Cork, in view of the fact that the number of pupils is set to increase in September 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6364/15]
View answerThe criteria used for the allocation of teachers to primary schools is published annually on the website of the Department of Education and Skills. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September. The circular outlining the staffing arrangements for the 2015/16 school year will be published shortly and schools will be able to determine their staffing for the coming year, using the enrolment bands at Appendix A of the circular.
The staffing arrangements include an appeals mechanism for schools to submit an appeal under certain criteria to an independent Appeals Board. The closing date for submission of appeals will be contained in the published staffing arrangements. The Primary Staffing Appeals Board operates independently of the Minister and the Department and its decision is final.
214. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason Student Universal Support Ireland are using a mountain pass, a route which is primarily used during summer as a tourist attraction and would be impassable during winter months, as an acceptable route in its assessment of a student grant application; if she will use her discretion in this particular case in view of the facts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6379/15]
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 compliments 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.
215. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will examine a submission (details supplied), and respond positively to each of the issues, as the matters stated reflect the current difficulties that exist in schools nationally; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6386/15]
View answerBudget 2015 included an increase in spending on education for the first time in recent years, amounting to additional funding of €60m during 2015. This funding will be used to provide 1,700 additional teachers and SNAs for our schools, as well as to fund prioritised reforms, such as implementation of the literacy and numeracy strategy, reform of junior cycle, and the introduction of education-focused preschool inspections. With regard to Resource Teachers for Travellers, the principle of inclusion is at the core of the Report and Recommendations for a Traveller Education Strategy published in 2006 and, accordingly, the focus of both current and future provision is on the development of a more inclusive school environment. In keeping with this principle, additional resources provided in the education system are allocated on the basis of identified individual educational need rather than that of ethnic or cultural background. Following decisions of the last Government, as part of the December 2010 budgetary process, Traveller pupils who are eligible for learning support teaching now receive this tuition through the existing learning support provision in schools. This is in keeping with the policy of inclusion and the 2006 report.
The General Allocation Model, which provides additional learning support and English as an additional language allocations for primary schools, was updated for all primary schools from the 2012/13 school year and now includes the Traveller pupils who had previously been supported by Resource Teacher for Traveller (RTT) posts. Limited alleviation measures were put in place to assist schools who had high concentrations of Traveller pupils previously supported by Resource Teacher for Traveller posts/hours, in the context of the limited resources available.
A total of 141 posts have been allocated to schools for this purpose. 81 posts were also provided to readjust Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) allocations to include Traveller pupils previously supported by Resource Teacher for Traveller posts. 38 alleviation posts were provided for schools that had high numbers or concentrations of Traveller pupils who were previously supported by RTT posts and a further 22 alleviation posts were allocated to schools who had the highest percentage of traveller pupils previously supported by RTT posts, in comparison to other schools, taking into account their overall pupil populations, and which had not qualified for the first round of alleviation posts.
This Government has been resolutely committed to protecting, and where possible, increasing, the level of investment being made to support children with special educational needs at a time when there has been a requirement to make expenditure reductions across a range of areas. It is an area of spending which has been prioritised above most other areas by this Government, despite the enormous pressures on all areas of public spending. Some €1.37 billion will be spent in support of children with Special Educational Needs this year, which represents approximately 15% of my Department's budget. 365 new Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts and 480 resource teaching posts have been provided to support children with special educational needs in schools in 2015, bringing the total number of SNAs available for allocation in 2015 to 11,330 posts and the total number of resource teaching posts to 6,705. Over 11,000 resource and learning support teaching posts are now available. This is the highest level of SNA and resource teaching allocations that we have ever had, and will ensure that children with special educational needs can continue to participate in education and be supported in a manner appropriate to their needs. With regard to the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act, a number of sections have been commenced, including those establishing the National Council for Special Education and those promoting an inclusive approach to education of children. The NCSE report on 'Supporting Students with Special Educational Needs in Schools' which was published in 2013 and is available on the NCSE website www.ncse.ie, recommends that the EPSEN Act be fully implemented as soon as possible. The report also states that the NCSE recognises that the current economic climate makes it unlikely that the Government will be able to implement this recommendation in the short to medium term. It is intended to bring into effect many of the good ideas contained in the EPSEN Act, on a non-statutory basis initially, through policy developments across a range of areas, in conjunction with NCSE policy advice.
216. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to add the Polish language to the leaving certificate curriculum, in view of the fact that more persons here speak Polish than Arabic, Japanese, Russian or Hebrew which are on the curriculum. [6412/15]
View answerThere are a range of languages, including foreign languages, available for the Leaving Certificate in our schools. In addition to English and Irish, Ancient Greek, Arabic, French, German, Hebrew Studies, Italian, Japanese, Spanish and Russian are available. There are also a suite of non-curricular EU languages such as Polish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Romanian, Modern Greek, Finnish, Polish, Estonian, Slovakian, Swedish, Czech, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Portuguese, Danish, Dutch, and Croatian which students from those EU countries can present for in the Leaving Certificate.
217. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason for the delay in appointing a contractor to the Clifden community school project; when it is expected to have a contractor appointed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6418/15]
View answerThe proposed building project to provide a new school for Clifden Community School has encountered a number of difficulties since it was authorised to proceed to tender in 2014. As a result of these difficulties, the Department has advised the school that the most expedient and effective means of progressing the project to construction is for the project to be re-tendered. The project remains on the Departments Construction Programme and will be progressed through a new tender process in the coming months. The new tender process will provide both the school and the Department with greater certainty with regard to the appointment of a Contractor to commence the construction of the new school in 2015. The school authority has been kept fully informed regarding these developments.
218. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for funding to construct a sports hall for a school (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6420/15]
View answerI can confirm that my Department is in receipt of a Major Capital Application for the provision of a PE hall for the school in question. As the Deputy will be aware, due to the competing demands on my Department's capital budget imposed by the need to prioritise the funding available for the provision of essential school classroom accommodation, it is not possible to provide an indicative timeframe for the provision of funding for the facility in question at this time. I wish to advise the Deputy however that my Department devolved very significant funding to the school concerned in 2011 for the provision of four additional general classrooms to meet the schools immediate accommodation needs.
219. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will consider flying the Amber Flag from her Department's buildings on a chosen day in order to raise awareness of the Amber Flag programme, which works to raise awareness of mental health issues within second level schools, sports clubs and youth organisations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6428/15]
View answerWhile my Department arranges for the flying of the National Flag and EU Flag on its premises in accordance with protocol set out by the Department of An Taoiseach on designated days and on important State occasions, it is not the policy to fly flags in respect of individual charitable causes. In relation to the objectives of the programme in question, my Department is strongly supportive of the promotion of positive mental health awareness in schools. The Department adopts a holistic and integrated approach to supporting the work of schools in promoting positive mental health and to supporting those with the broad range of problems, behavioural emotional and social. The processes span the curriculum in schools, whole-school ethos, quality of teaching, learning and assessment, student support and pastoral care and the provision of professional development for teachers. It also involves other supports such as educational psychological services and guidance and counselling services, and the interface with other agencies, both nationally and locally. Schools also engage in a wide range of sport and cultural co-curricular activities which provide an important opportunity for students to experience success and personal growth.
Well-being Guidelines for Post-Primary and more recently for Primary Schools have been produced by my Department in conjunction with the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive. The guidelines are informed by consultation with key Education and Health partners and by the findings of current research. They provide practical guidance to schools on how they can promote mental health and well-being in an integrated school-wide way and they also provide evidence-based advice on how to support young people who may be at risk of suicidal behaviour.
The Guidelines build on the significant work already taking place in schools, including through the Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) curriculum, the whole-school guidance plan, the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) continuum of support model and the HSE, Health Promoting Schools Process. Information is also provided on how to access support from the SPHE Support Service and other external agencies and support services.
The Amber Flag initiative is one of a range of external resources and initiatives that are available to assist, among others, schools in supporting various aspects of a positive mental health process. Unfortunately my Department is not in a position to endorse each individual initiative, and it is a matter for schools to determine which of these resources they choose to access. My Department's advice is that schools in the first instance should implement the guidelines documents effectively and when considering collaborating with external agencies in doing work in the area of mental health promotion, schools should be cognisant of DES Circular 0023/2010 which provide advice on best practice for Social Personal and Health Education. I would nonetheless commend Suicide Aware for its initiative in this regard and wish them success in this venture.
