Written Answers Nos. 198-208
198. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills when correspondence will issue in relation to a school transport appeal in respect of a pupil (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26676/15]
View answerThe case referred to by the Deputy in the details supplied is the subject of an appeal to the School Transport Appeals Board.
This Board is independent of my Department and I understand the case is due to be considered at their next meeting which is scheduled for 16th July 2015.
The Board will inform the family directly of their determination on the matter.
199. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she is aware of the current crisis facing students in obtaining accommodation in Dublin city and the need for a long-term solution to be created to mitigate this crisis and ensure access to education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26686/15]
View answerI appreciate that there are concerns regarding the availability of accommodation for students in certain parts of the country and for that reason I have asked the HEA to report on this issue. The HEA are currently working on a draft report on student accommodation which will be available shortly and will give us an up to date picture of the situation.
In that context, I will continue to work with Government colleagues and stakeholders to explore ways to increase the availability of student accommodation where needed. Many of our third-level institutions are currently working to develop additional accommodation for their students, which will help to address the issue in the medium term.
In the longer term, the Government is committed to addressing the housing shortage through the Construction 2020 strategy. This will not resolve all of our problems immediately, but I am confident that the implementation of Construction 2020 will provide us with a sustainable housing stock in the medium to longer term.
200. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide, in tabular form, the number of requests for meetings she has received from private, external, non-State-funded lobby groups; the number of meetings she has held with these groups; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26698/15]
View answerAs the data are not readily available in the format requested I have asked officials at my office to compile the data and I will forward it to the Deputy when it is to hand.
201. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills notwithstanding her previous replies, if she will review the decision to refuse funding for a playground surface upgrade in the case of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare, with particular reference to observing health and safety standards and ensuring a safe environment for students. [26718/15]
View answerMy Department's Emergency Works Scheme was put in place to address the health and safety concerns of school authorities which pose an immediate risk to health, life, property or the environment which are sudden, unforeseen and require immediate action and, in the case of a school, if not corrected would prevent the school or part thereof from opening.
The school in question submitted an application for emergency funding to resurface the school playground. As the scope of works for this project is outside the terms of the Emergency Works Scheme it cannot be considered for emergency funding.
As previously advised, it is open to the school authority to apply for funding for this project under a future Summer Works Scheme.
202. Deputy Derek Keating asked the Minister for Education and Skills given that an investigation pursuant to section 19 of the Education Act 1998 has been carried out in a school (details supplied) in County Dublin, if she will confirm that recommendations have been made and fully implemented and that a copy of these will be provided for this Deputy and parents of pupils who were interested or affected by the issues raised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26738/15]
View answerThe Education Act 1998, provides for schools to be managed by Boards of Management on behalf of the relevant school patrons.
Section 19 of the Education Act provides for the patron, where he/she is of the opinion that the functions of a board are not being effectively discharged, following issuing a notice to the board members and consideration of any representations received, to authorise any person or persons as the patron may deem appropriate to report to the patron on any matter arising from or relating to the operation of that board.
The Patron is required to inform the Minister where he/she proposes to exercise functions under section 19. In this regard, I can confirm that the patron of the school in question informed me of his intention to invoke his powers under section 19 of the Education Act. There is no requirement for the Patron to provide me with any further details in relation to the matter.
203. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will examine and expedite a remote area grant in respect of a child (details supplied) in County Kerry for the 2015-16 school year, as all relevant documentation has been submitted; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26747/15]
View answerUnder the terms of my Department's Primary School Transport Scheme, children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 3.2 km from and are attending their nearest national school.
The Remote Area Grant is payable to eligible families who have applied for school transport within prescribed time limits and for whom no service is available. Full details of the Remote Area Grant are available on my Department's website at www.education.ie. Bus Éireann, which operates the school transport scheme on behalf of my Department, has advised that the family in question has not submitted a completed application form for school transport for the 2015/16 school year.
In this regard, the family should liaise with their local Bus Éireann office in Tralee at 066-7164750 or by e-mail at schools.tralee@buseireann.ie.
204. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason schools have not been informed of their special needs assistant allocation for September 2015 in advance of the school holidays; if she is aware of the disruption which this causes in school planning and anxiety to parents; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26773/15]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that 11,330 whole time equivalent Special Needs Assistant (SNA) posts have been made available to the NCSE to allocate to schools to the end of the current school year.
This is the highest number of SNAs that we have ever had and it has ensured that children with special educational needs can continue to participate in education and be supported in a manner appropriate to their needs.
This year, the NCSE requested all schools to submit applications for SNA support by mid March 2015. Following this deadline each application had to be assessed by the NCSE before they were in a position to advise the Minister on the quantum of SNAs that would need to be allocated to schools for the coming school year.
The final advice on this was received on 18th June last and the Minister will be seeking to confirm allocations to schools over the next ten days. Details of SNA allocations to schools for 2015/16 will be available on the NCSE website on completion of this process.
205. Deputy Anne Ferris asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the Comptroller and Auditor General has reported on the auditing of the accounts of University College Dublin in recent years; the outcome and recommendations of any such audit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26784/15]
View answerThe Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) audits the annual statements of University College Dublin (UCD). The last C&AG audited accounts are for 2010/2011 for which the C&AG issued an unqualified audit certificate.
I understand that UCD expect to receive the audit certificate from the C&AG in respect of the 2011/2012 accounts shortly. No issues have been raised by the C&AG with UCD in relation to those accounts.
206. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update regarding the merited appeal due to exceptional circumstances and the importance of the retention of a teacher in a school (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26787/15]
View answerThe criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on the Department's website. 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 staffing process includes an appeals mechanism for schools to submit an appeal under certain criteria to an independent Primary Staffing Appeals Board. Circular 0005/2015 provides details for schools wishing to make an appeal.
My Department has not received a staffing appeal from the school referred to by the Deputy. The next meeting of the Appeals Board will take place in October, 2015. The application form for staffing appeals is contained in Circular 0005/2015. The Appeal Board operates independently of the Minister and the Department and its decision is final.
207. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason all class H occupations are excluded from the higher education access route programme, in view of the disparate nature of skill and income levels among own account works; the reason the application of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 11 for inclusion in the programme was denied, due to the person's parent's occupation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26791/15]
View answerThe Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) is a college and university admissions scheme which offers places on reduced points and extra college support to school leavers from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
The scheme is operated by a number of higher education institutions and not by my Department. Admissions to the institutions are regulated by the institutions themselves.
Individual students who have queries on this matter can contact HEAR Higher Education Institutions directly. The Deputy may wish to contact the Irish Universities Association in this instance.
208. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills the policy at primary level and at second level concerning the granting of an exemption from learning Irish to children with autism spectrum disorder; her views on a situation where an application was not sought at primary level and is now being sought at second level for a child; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26809/15]
View answerChildren on the autistic spectrum range from children who are high functioning and who have exceptionally good facility with language to those who are low functioning and may be non-verbal. Those who are at the higher functioning levels would be expected to be taught the full curriculum, including Irish, while those at lower functioning levels may be exempted from learning Irish where their circumstances meet the criteria for the granting of an exemption.
The criteria for the granting of exemptions from the study of Irish at primary (circular 12/96) or post-primary (M10/94) are similar. The authority to grant exemptions has been delegated to school management. The parents in this case should apply to their child's post-primary school. Delay on the part of parents in applying for an exemption on behalf of their child should not by itself cause the application to fail where otherwise the child's circumstances fully meet the criteria for an exemption.
The Department is currently finalising a review of its exemptions policy at primary and post-primary levels.
