Written Answers Nos. 806-816
806. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to the announcement of over 600 new special needs assistant posts, if she will provide details of the number that will be provided in the Fingal area of north Dublin; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28920/15]
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 resource teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) to schools to support children with special educational needs. 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 deployment of SNAs within schools is a matter for the individual Principal/Board of Management. SNAs should be deployed by the school in a manner which best meets the care support requirements of the children enrolled in the school for whom SNA support has been allocated. It is a matter for schools to allocate support as required, and on the basis of individual need, which allows schools flexibility in how the SNA support is utilised.
All schools were asked to apply for SNA support for the 2015/16 school year by 18th March 2015. The NCSE also continued to accept applications after this date in recognition that enrolments may not have been completed or where assessments were not completed.
Details of SNA allocations which have been made to schools by the NCSE for the coming school year are available on the NCSE website www.ncse.ie and can be viewed on a per county basis.
All schools have the 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.
807. Deputy Anthony Lawlor asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will publish, as a statutory instrument, her Department’s document primary online database, inclusive of all forms and regulations governing the operation of same; if she will replace the item entitled pupil religion in the database with one which asks parents whether or not they wish their child to receive religious instruction in the school; if she will provide an update on the accessibility of information from the database, or any component of it, to third-parties; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28924/15]
View answerA Fair Processing Notice which outlines the legal basis under which schools can ask parents/guardians for information and share it with the Department of Education is available on my Department's website. The Fair Processing Notice also outlines the bodies with whom the Department proposes to share data with, and the conditions under which data will be shared. Legislative provision exists for all proposed data-sharing arrangements for POD. Note that the term "sharing of data" does not mean that bodies with whom the data are shared will have direct access to POD.http://www.education.ie/en/Publications/Statistics/Primary-Online-Database-POD-/POD-Fair-Processing-Notice.pdf.
While the Department was at all times satisfied that it had adequate legislative basis to collect all of the data sought for POD, to avoid any possible legal doubt following the investigation of the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the Department of Education and Skills has agreed to make an amendment to the Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations, 2007 (S.I. 142/2007) to bring the particular data fields in issue within the scope of Regulation 189. The Department is engaged with the Department of Social Protection (under whose remit the making of the necessary Regulations falls) on this matter currently and the proposed amendment is expected to be concluded in the coming weeks.
The office of the Data Protection Commissioner has stated that the amended statutory instrument when introduced would, in time, cover data already collected and no disaggregation of data already collected would be proposed.
A Circular which addresses frequently asked questions from schools is also available on my Department's website http://www.education.ie/en/Circulars-and-Forms/Active-Circulars/cl0025_2015.pdf.
The primary purpose of POD will be to monitor the education progress of primary pupils (in DES aided schools), throughout the primary system and onwards to post-primary level and to help them develop their full educational potential. Information on religion is being sought, on an optional basis solely for statistical purposes. Whether parents/guardians wish their children to receive religious instructions in the school is a matter between the parents and the schools and is not the purpose of POD.
Fair Processing Notice also outlines the bodies with whom the Department proposes to share data with, and the conditions under which data will be shared. Legislative provision exists for all proposed data-sharing arrangements for POD. Note that the term "sharing of data" does not mean that bodies with whom the data are shared will have direct access to POD.
808. Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Education and Skills the name and patron of all new primary schools opened or planned in the Dublin Rathdown constituency since 2011. [28925/15]
View answerIn September 2012, two new primary schools opened in the Rathdown constituency area – Ballinteer Educate Together National School and Stepaside Educate Together National School, under the patronage of Educate Together. In September 2013, Gaelscoil Sliabh Rua commenced operation in the area, under the patronage of An Foras Pátrúnachta.
In February of this year, I announced the areas where new primary schools will be opening in 2015 and 2016. This includes a new school to serve the Goatstown/Stillorgan area, which lies within the Rathdown constituency area. This school is due to commence operation in September 2016. As with all such new schools, my Department will run an open patronage determination process to establish who will operate the new school. This process will take place later this year or early next year. It will be open to all patrons and prospective patrons to apply to run the school.
809. Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Education and Skills the name of both primary and secondary schools in the Dublin Rathdown constituency which since 2011 received funding for additional classrooms. [28926/15]
View answerWhile it is not possible to provide details of capital funding issued to schools within a county, overall details on a county basis are available as well as details in respect of individual schools on receipt of school names and roll numbers.
Capital funding issued to schools in Dublin for the years 2011 to date in 2015 is as follows:
- PRIMARY: 2011, €81.337m; 2012, €60.620m; 2013, €53.670m; 2014, €74.755m; and to end June 2015, €22.988m.
- POST-PRIMARY: 2011, €39.596m; 2012, €21.129m; 2013, €32.741m; 2014, €48.265m; and to end June 2015, €19.730m.
I would further advise the Deputy that information on the Large Scale Projects Programme, the Additional Accommodation Scheme, the Prefab Replacement Initiative, the Summer Works Scheme and the Emergency Works Scheme is available on my Department's website.
810. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she has considered developing adult apprenticeships for child care to equip those returning to the workforce with the skills that might assist child care providers with the staff to address the acute child care shortage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28961/15]
View answerIn January 2015, the Apprenticeship Council formally invited proposals for new apprenticeship programmes from consortia of enterprise, professional bodies and education and training providers. 86 separate proposals were received by the deadline of end March. The Apprenticeship Council reported to me on the 30th June following its evaluation of proposals for new apprenticeships. No proposal was received to develop a new apprenticeship for childcare.
In relation to skills that might assist childcare providers, the Further Education and Training Services Plan 2015 sets out how the 16 Education and Training Boards will provide a wide range of courses in the early childhood education and childcare areas.
811. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new apprenticeships for young persons that have been developed in the past two years; the sector skills areas covered; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28969/15]
View answerAt the end of 2014, apprentice registrations for the existing 27 craft apprenticeships were up 40% on the same point in 2013. This positive trend in apprentice registrations is continuing across the majority of craft apprenticeships. At the end of June 2015 apprentice registrations were up 17% on the same time last year. The forecast for future apprenticeships registrations remains strong and it is predicted that craft based apprentice registrations will continue to grow incrementally up to 2018.
A new Stonecutting and Stonemasonry apprenticeship programme launched in April 2015. The apprenticeship provides participants with specialist skills from the processing of stone to carving, conservation and restoration along with monumental work. The apprenticeship has been developed by SOLAS in conjunction with the Office of Public Works and other key stakeholders and all off-the-job training phases will be delivered by Kerry ETB for the Conservation and Restoration of historic buildings and monuments as part of our national heritage strategy. In addition, SOLAS in collaboration with the Louth and Meath ETB Dundalk Training Centre is planning to commence a new Pipefitting apprenticeship on 28 September 2015.
I have recently received the Apprenticeship Council Report on New Apprenticeship Programme and I am currently in the process of examining the implications of the report in the light of the governance, budgetary and other considerations raised in their report. The Report recommends 25 proposals for priority development across a wide range of sectors and levels of the National Framework of Qualifications. The next stage of the process involves the detailed development of the proposals into apprenticeships, including curriculum development, quality assurance, approval of employers and a range of other issues.
813. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address a matter (details supplied) regarding school transport in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29024/15]
View answerThe scale of the School Transport Scheme, transporting some 114,000 children every school day on some 6,000 school transport routes utilising some 4,000 vehicles every school day makes it the largest public transport operation in the State.
Transport services for both primary and post-primary children are co-ordinated by Bus Éireann and transport routes are planned and shared in such a way as to ensure that school transport vehicles are fully utilised in an efficient and cost effective manner.
The starting date for school transport services is an integral part of this objective and is arrived at by reference to the standard school year, the requirement that post-primary schools be open for a minimum of 167 days and the commencement date of the State examinations.
The additional cost of providing school transport services outside of the above considerations would be prohibitive on a national basis.
814. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update on a school building project (details supplied) in County Meath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29065/15]
View answerThe delivery of the building project at the school referred to by the Deputy has been devolved to the Louth Meath Education and Training Board.
In June, the ETB received approval from my Department to award the contract. It is envisaged that work will commence on site shortly.
815. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update on a school building project (details supplied) in County Meath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29066/15]
View answerThe tendering process for PPP Bundle 5, which includes the school to which the Deputy refers, has reached the selection of the Preferred Tenderer stage with selection scheduled to be finalised in August. The targets of having a contract in place with the Preferred Tenderer by February 2016 remains with construction scheduled to begin immediately thereafter.
Enabling works for the school have been identified and will proceed to construction later this year independently of the PPP contract.
816. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update on a school building project (details supplied) in County Meath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29067/15]
View answerThe school building projects referred to by the Deputy comprises the construction of two new primary schools with a shared GP Hall and the demolition of the existing school buildings to facilitate the construction of a new playing field, car parking and bus set down area.
The new school buildings were completed at the end of May 2015. Demolition of the old school buildings and the construction of the playing field, car parking and bus set down area are currently under way. It is expected that all remaining works will be completed by September 2015.
