Written Answers Nos. 465-479
465. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she has considered the submission for Louth Meath Education and Training Board and specifically O'Fiaich College in Dundalk, County Louth to expend the further education provision of that college; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4074/16]
View answerAn application was submitted to my Department by Louth Meath Education and Training Board on 25 January 2016 for a major refurbishment and extension project at O'Fiaich College, Dundalk, to include provision for existing and future PLC needs. This submission will be assessed by officials in my Department.
466. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if and when vacancies in the office in her Department in Athlone, County Westmeath following a number of retirements, will be filled. [4104/16]
View answerI am pleased to advise the Deputy that the three current vacancies generated by staff retirements in my Department's office in Athlone, have been filled by assignments from the Public Appointments Service.
However due to contractual obligations with current employers some of the staff assigned will not take up their positions until later this month.
467. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address a matter regarding a Gaelscoil (details supplied) in Dublin 17; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4105/16]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department provided a purpose built building for the school in question in 2008. My Department, therefore, has no plans to replace this building.
468. Deputy Noel Harrington asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he has made a decision on an application for funding by a school (details supplied) in County Cork under the summer works scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4113/16]
View answerI wish to confirm to the Deputy that my Department is in receipt of an application from the school in question under the Summer Works Scheme.
Commensurate with the level of funding available for the Scheme, applications including that from the school concerned, will be assessed on a top down basis in accordance with the prioritisation criteria outlined in the governing Circular Letter for the Scheme. This Circular Letter (0055/2015), is available on my Department's website www.education.ie.
It is my intention to publish a list of successful applicants at the end of February/early March 2016.
469. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address a matter (details supplied) regarding apprenticeships; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4123/16]
View answerThis is an operational matter for SOLAS who manage the apprenticeship programme.
I am informed by SOLAS that the apprenticeship management system is designed to automatically call apprentices by location, trade, and training phase on a longest waiting basis on the day of scheduling to the nearest available Education and Training Board and/or Institute of Technology. While every effort is made to eliminate unnecessary travel, unfortunately for some apprentices it is impossible to avoid having to attend training facilities that are not convenient to their locality.
SOLAS strongly recommends that employers and their apprentices accept whatever offers are made to them as failure to accept such offers will extend the period of their apprenticeship training, which may have financial repercussions for them throughout their apprenticeships.
Apprentices may be entitled to either a travel or an accommodation allowance to attend their off-the-job training. They may also be entitled to a meal allowance if there is no subsidised canteen available.
470. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of a school building project (details supplied) in County Laois; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4129/16]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, the project for the school referred to, is included in the 6 Year Construction Programme that I announced on 17th November last and is scheduled to proceed to tender and construction in 2017.
I understand that the arrangements for the acquisition of a site, by the Patron, for the school project concerned are being finalised. Assuming no issues arise, once the site has been acquired the project will be advanced in architectural planning.
471. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she received an application from a school (details supplied) in respect of energy efficiency measures under the summer works scheme; when she will make a decision on this application; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4132/16]
View answerI wish to confirm to the Deputy that my Department is in receipt of an application from the school in question under the Summer Works Scheme.
Commensurate with the level of funding available for the Scheme, applications including that from the school concerned, will be assessed on a top down basis in accordance with the prioritization criteria outlined in the governing Circular Letter for the Scheme. This Circular Letter (0055/2015), is available on my Department's website www.education.ie.
It is my intention to publish a list of successful applicants at the end of February/early March 2016.
472. Deputy Pat Deering asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will make history a compulsory junior certificate subject rather than a choice subject in the junior certificate, depending on the school a child attends. [4148/16]
View answerCurrently, over 90% of students choose history although it is compulsory in only half our schools. Curriculum choice is important in motivating students to learn and to remain in school to completion of senior cycle.
Schools across all sectors offer History. History teachers attract students to their subject through their own love and passion for History, and by engaging the natural curiosity of their students in, for example, the lives of people, the origins of the modern world and in objects and documents from the past. History is the 5th most popular subject in the Junior Certificate examination. The Decade of Centenaries is giving added interest to History, especially the 1916- 2106 celebrations this year.
I have every confidence that through the implementation of the Framework for Junior Cycle the place of history will be retained and given a new impetus across the junior cycle curriculum. Such an impetus should help to improve uptake of History at senior cycle also. In fact, a new specification for Junior Cycle History will shortly be developed by the NCCA. This will involve intensive consultation whereby all interested parties will be able to provide their views. The new specification will be available for implementation in all schools from September 2018.
473. Deputy Gabrielle McFadden asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of a school building project (details supplied) in County Westmeath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4165/16]
View answerThe major building project for the school to which the Deputy refers is at an advanced stage of architectural planning – Stage 2b, which includes the applications for Planning Permission, Fire Cert, Disability Access Cert and the preparation of Tender Documents. A shortlist of prequalified contractors has been selected. All relevant statutory approvals have been obtained and the Design Team are currently working on the preparation of the tender documentation.
Once the Stage 2b Tender documentation is submitted by the design team, my Department will carry out its review and subject to no issues arising my Department will revert directly to the school regarding progression of the project to tender stage.
474. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she is aware of the poor physical condition of a school (details supplied) in County Wexford; if she will improve the facilities at the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4188/16]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department is due to meet with representatives of the school to which he refers to discuss their accommodation needs.
475. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address a matter (details supplied) regarding financial support; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4196/16]
View answerI can confirm to the Deputy that students who are attending an approved undergraduate course in an EU Member State, can apply for a maintenance grant in respect of an approved course which is being pursued in an approved institution.
The student grant scheme does not extend to postgraduate courses pursued outside of Ireland.
In transferring back to Ireland after year one, a student must satisfy the terms and conditions of the student grant scheme in relation to progression, i.e. a student must be moving from year to year within a course having successfully completed the previous year or be transferring from one course to another where the award for the subsequent course is of a higher level than the previous course.
Tax relief at the standard rate of tax may be claimed in respect of tuition fees paid for approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU Member States and in non-EU countries. Further information on this tax relief is available from the Revenue Commissioners on www.revenue.ie.
476. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will address a matter (details supplied) regarding remuneration for teachers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4199/16]
View answerSince the beginning of the financial crisis, there has been a need to enact a number of measures to reduce public expenditure. The previous Government reduced the salaries and allowances payable of all new entrants to public service recruitment grades (including teachers) by 10% with effect from 1 January 2011 and required that such new entrants would start on the first point of the applicable salary scale.
Subsequently, following the public service-wide review of allowances and premium payments, the Government decided to withdraw or modify allowances for new beneficiary public servants with effect from 1 February 2012. Under this decision, certain allowances were withdrawn for new beneficiary teachers, including qualification allowances. However, the Government partially compensated for this by deciding that new entrant teachers would henceforth commence on a new salary scale which had a starting point higher than the starting point of the old scale.
These measures were implemented at time of very difficult financial and budgetary circumstances for the State.
Alleviation of the salary imbalance between those who entered the public service since 2011 and those who entered before that date began under the Haddington Road Agreement. Improved pay scales for post-1 January 2011 and post-1 February 2012 entrants to teaching were agreed and implemented under the terms of that Agreement. In addition, allowances payable to post-1 January 2011 entrants and such allowances as remain payable to post-1 February 2012 entrants were restored to pre-2011 levels.
The Lansdowne Road Agreement will, through salary increases and a reduction in the Pension-Related Deduction, begin the process of restoring the reductions to public service pay which were implemented over recent years. The issue of equalised pay scales was not one which could be resolved in the discussions which led to the Agreement. However, the flat-rate increases contained in the Agreement will be proportionately more favourable to new entrants to teaching (who are lower on the pay scale) than to longer serving teachers. Circular letter 0066/2015 which issued in December 2015 sets out the revisions to the thresholds for the Pension Related Deduction from 2015 and revised salary scales for teachers which take effect from 1 January 2016.
477. Deputy Jim Daly asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will issue a final response to correspondence (details supplied) sent to her in September 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4202/16]
View answerA review has been carried out on the salary and service of the person referred to by the Deputy and an official from my Department will contact her directly.
478. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide, in tabular form, per county, the number of applications received for each of the years 2013, 2014 and 2015 under the primary school transport scheme; the total number of these applications that were deemed to be ineligible for each of these years; the total number of ineligible applications that were refused due to a determination that an applicant was not attending their nearest school as per the rules governing the scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4226/16]
View answer479. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of applications received under the post primary school transport scheme, including the number which were deemed to be ineligible, and the number of ineligible applications which were refused due to applicants not attending their nearest school by county, for each of the years 2013 to 2015, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4227/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 478 and 479 together.
Bus Éireann has advised that the level of detailed information requested by the Deputy is not readily available.
However, the number of new applications for school transport received for the three years in question was in the region of 2/3,000 for primary schools and 6/7,000 for post primary schools. Children who are already availing of a school transport service do not need to re-apply each year. In total some 113,000 children are currently availing of school transport services.
