Written Answers Nos. 759-773
759. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason there is no formal representation of the small and medium-sized enterprise sector on the newly established Apprenticeship Council; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11194/15]
View answerI established the Apprenticeship Council last year. In considering the membership of the Council, I had to balance the requirement to have input from a broad range of employers and other stakeholders with the need for a tight and effective working structure. In that context, I asked the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, which represents a range of company types and sizes through its member associations, to nominate a member of the Council. A number of individual employers in various sectors are also members of the Apprenticeship Council.
760. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to the National University of Ireland's moves towards removing foreign languages as an entry requirement to courses; the options available to her to intervene if it continues with this policy change; and her plans to address this matter. [11205/15]
View answerI understand that the Deputy is referring to part of a discussion paper from the Irish Universities Association task group on the selection and entry into higher education. This paper does not contain concrete proposals by the NUI but is intended to stimulate debate in the university sector on a whole range of issues around selection and entry into higher education.
The Irish Universities Association are part of the wider Transition Reform Steering Group chaired by the Secretary General of my Department which is in the process of developing proposals that aim to improve the transition of school leavers into higher education. Any recommendations are being carefully considered by key partners at both second and third level to ensure that there will be no adverse impacts on second or third level students and their education.
I am strongly committed to promoting the uptake of foreign languages at all levels of the education system. My Department is developing a strategy on foreign languages which is currently in consultation phase.
761. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an extra teacher and additional resources to cater for the special educational needs of children attending a national school (details supplied) in County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11212/15]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the General Allocation Model (GAM), which provides additional resource teaching, learning support, and English Additional Language support for all primary schools, is now updated annually based on the number of mainstream teaching posts in each school and in order to take account of updated enrolments.
Details of the GAM allocation process, and of GAM allocations for each school for the coming 2015/16 school year, are set out in DES Circular 05/2015, which is available on my Department's website at www.education.ie.
Since the 2012/13 school year, all Traveller pupils who had previously been supported by Resource Teacher for Traveller (RTT) posts are now included in the enrolments which are counted for GAM allocation purposes.
Traveller pupils who are eligible for learning support teaching now receive this tuition through the existing learning support provision in schools.
Limited alleviation measures were also 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.
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) also allocates additional resource teaching hours to schools for children who have been assessed within the low incidence, or more complex, category of special need, as defined by my Department's Circular Sp Ed 02/05. The NCSE operates within my Department's established criteria for the allocation of Special Education supports and the staffing resources available to my Department.
Schools have been asked to apply to the NCSE for Resource Teaching support for the 2015/16 school year by 18th March, 2015. Following consideration of all applications for resource teaching support, the NCSE will make allocations to qualifying schools. All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO.
Although the application date of 18th March, 2015 has now passed, schools who wish to make applications to the NCSE for additional resources to cater for children who have been assessed as having low incidence special educational needs, should submit such applications to the NCSE.
762. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of administrative principal posts in primary schools that have been suppressed since the removal of the ten teacher rule in favour of 178 children for schools; the amount it would cost to re-instate the ten teacher rule; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11228/15]
View answerTeacher allocations are approved annually in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. In recent years, my Department has simplified the teacher allocation and redeployment processes with a view to giving earlier certainty to schools in relation to their teacher allocation and the arrangements for the filling of teaching posts.
The reforms to the teacher allocation process introduced for the 2012/13 school year revised the basis for appointment of Administrative Principal and Administrative Deputy Principal status in primary schools. The criteria for such status is now solely based on pupil numbers rather than the previous approach of mostly on pupil numbers but some also on teacher numbers. Similar revisions applied to DEIS Band 1 and 2 schools which operate at more favourable ratios.
To ease the transition to the entirely enrolment driven arrangements for Administrative Principals and Administrative Deputy Principals, schools adversely affected by the rule change continue to keep their administrative status until there is a change of Principal or Deputy Principal, as appropriate, in the school providing they continue to satisfy the historical rule.
There were 54 primary schools (including DEIS Band 1 & 2 schools) with administrative principal status under the historical rule in the school year 2012/13. Three of these schools have since amalgamated, 25 continue to hold administrative status under the historical rule, 15 now hold administrative status under the revised enrolment based criterion and 11 of the schools no longer hold administrative status.
The relevant enrolment thresholds for the appointment of Administrative Principals and Administrative Deputy Principals for the coming school year are outlined in Appendix B of Circular 0015/2015 which is available on the Department website.
763. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update in the status of a project (details supplied) in County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11238/15]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, this school made an application to my Department for devolved funding for a GP room.
Given the current financial constraints within which my Department is operating, the position is that priority is being given to school applications for essential mainstream classroom and special education accommodation. In that context, my Department has advised the school concerned that it is not in a position to indicate at this point when a GP room for the school in question will be progressed.
764. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will investigate a situation where a Student Universal Support Ireland applicant insists they logged on to review the application for the second year of college, but Student Universal Support Ireland states that it has no record of the review and therefore cannot pay out the person's grant. [11243/15]
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 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 is responding to email queries within a matter of days.
765. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the ongoing Economic and Social Research Institute evaluation of Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools and of the research of Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools that was announced at a seminar in May 2014, which aims to collate all the evaluation work to date on Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools policy; when is it expected that the future policy, based on this piece of research, will be developed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11268/15]
View answerThe report on Learning from the Evaluation of DEIS commissioned in 2014 is currently nearing completion and I expect to receive the report shortly.
This report incorporates information in relation to the various inputs, processes and educational outcomes contained in the findings from the DEIS research and evaluations conducted to date by the Educational Research Centre and my Department's Inspectorate. It also reviews other related Irish and International research on educational disadvantage. The report assesses the main findings of this research and will provide advice to inform future policy direction in relation to educational disadvantage including DEIS.
I look forward to receiving the report.
766. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to the lack of disease guidelines and other national guidelines regarding the way schools should deal with life threatening conditions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11269/15]
View answerThe position is that the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) are the statutory authorities with responsibility for the public health issues referred to by the Deputy.
The role of my Department in this regard is the dissemination of public health information provided by the statutory authorities to schools. The HSE have published guidance for schools on the management of infectious disease. This guidance called the "Management of Infectious Disease in Schools" is available via my Department's website at www.education.ie and also via the Health Protection Surveillance Centre of the HSE at www.hpsc.ie.
767. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason a person (details supplied) is being assessed by Student Universal Support Ireland for a mature student grant on the basis of the income of that person's parent, and not on the basis of that person's own income and the income of that person's spouse; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11274/15]
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 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 is responding to email queries within a matter of days.
768. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills the current arrangement for part-time auxiliary staff, including caretakers who are employed in primary schools in County Donegal; if they have a contract with her Department, Donegal Vocational Education Committee or any other State body; if they are entitled to benefits such as sick pay, holiday pay and pensions; if they have specific conditions and rates of pay or if that is decided on an individual basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11280/15]
View answerSchemes were initiated in 1978 and 1979 for the employment of Clerical Officers and Caretakers in primary and secondary schools. While a small number of these staff remain in schools, the schemes are being phased out and have been superseded by a more extensive grant scheme. The majority of primary and voluntary secondary schools in the Free Education Scheme now receive capitation grant assistance to provide for caretaking and/or secretarial services. Within the capitation grant schemes, it is a matter for each individual school to decide how best to apply the grant funding to suit its particular needs and the Department does not stipulate how caretaking and/or secretarial services are to be obtained. Where a school uses the grant funding to employ a caretaker and/or secretary, such staff are employees of individual schools. My Department therefore does not have any role in determining the pay and conditions under which they are engaged. These are matters to be agreed between the staff concerned and the school authorities.
Caretakers and secretaries employed by schools using grant funding are not regarded as public servants except for the purposes of the pay reduction under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No.2) Act 2009, due to the definition of "public servant" used in that Act. The fact that such staff come within the definition of "public servant" solely for the purposes of the Act does not alter their employment status in any other respect.
Caretaking and administrative staff employed in Education and Training Boards (ETBs) are employees of the relevant ETB. Any queries in respect of such staff should be directed to the relevant employer.
769. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide support to a person (details supplied) in County Limerick in advancing a scholarship; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11296/15]
View answerUnder the terms of the student grant scheme, my Department provides maintenance grants to undergraduate students pursuing approved third level courses, in the State or in other E.U. Member States, to students who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those which relate to nationality, residency, approved course, previous academic attainment and means.
Under the student grant scheme an approved undergraduate course, in the State or in a Member State, is defined as a full-time course of at least two years duration pursued in an approved institution.
As the student grant scheme does not extend to courses pursued outside of the EU there is no provision to provide funding to the student referred to by the Deputy.
770. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for Education and Skills the options for parents who are prevented by school authorities from removing their children from junior certificate religion classes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11311/15]
View answerIn accordance with Section 30 of the Education Act (1998), no student can be required to attend instruction in any subject which is contrary to the conscience of the parent of the student. This applies at both primary and post primary levels.
I am not aware of any particular instances where a parent's wishes in relation to religious instruction have been refused by a school. This would be to contravene Section 30 of the Education Act.
My Department is currently drafting the Education (Admission to Schools) Bill. The main objective of the Bill is to provide an over-arching framework to ensure that how schools decide on who is enrolled and who is refused a place in schools is more structured, fair and transparent. However, the Bill will also provide for a school's enrolment policy to include details of the school's arrangements for students who do not want to attend religious instruction.
771. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 501 of 10 March 2015, if the changes to adjacent rules of the grant actually yielded a saving of €30 million; the exact saving that occurred; where moneys saved from this change were re-allocated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11343/15]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that adjustments of €178m were required to be made in the Education Sector in 2011. As previously advised, a range of budget measures to the student grants have been introduced over a period of years, including those in Budget 2011. The Deputy will also appreciate that the student grant scheme is a demand led scheme and therefore the cohort of students qualifying for grants each year varies; and is influenced by a number of factors. As such, it is difficult to disaggregate year-on-year savings to any one particular measure or to compare like with like in terms of the cohort of students qualifying for grants each year.
The measures taken in respect of student grants in recent years, have enabled the system to respond to increased demands on the student grants system due to the changed economic circumstances. During this time, the number of grant awardees has increased from 69,500 in 2009/10 to 79,000 in 2013/14.
772. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a special needs assistant can be facilitated in the case of a child (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11353/15]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), for allocating a quantum of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support for each school annually taking into account the assessed care needs of children qualifying for SNA support enrolled in the school.
Where a child has significant care needs, to the extent that they need additional support to be able to attend school, the NCSE may make an allocation of SNA support to the school to assist the child. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. The criteria by which SNA support is allocated to pupils is set out in my Department's Circular 0030/2014.
The NCSE will consider all applications for SNA support made by schools, including from the school referred to by the Deputy. All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO.
Schools have also been asked to apply to the NCSE, by 18th March, 2015, for SNA support for the 2015/16 school year. The NCSE will consider all applications for SNA support made by schools. Allocations for SNA support will then be made to qualifying schools.
Schools who wish to appeal the level of SNA allocation made to them may do so via the appeals process which is set out at www.ncse.ie.
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.
773. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Education and Skills the amount that was spent on the rebranding of, and new logo for, the Teaching Council, which was funded by the annual levies of teachers nationwide; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11357/15]
View answerIn accordance with the Teaching Council Act 2001, the Teaching Council is the statutory body for the regulation of the teaching profession, including the recognition of teaching qualifications and the registration of teachers.
The decision of the Teaching Council to change its logo was an operational matter for the Council. The Council is self-financing and the cost of this change was not met by Oireachtas or public funds.
