Written Answers Nos. 166-180
166. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Education and Skills the steps being taken to protect Irish citizens' rights to study in a university or college on the island of Ireland and to ensure that students are not unduly punished financially as a result of Britain's decision to leave the European Union. [19942/18]
View answerFollowing the UK triggering Article 50 of the Treaty in March 2017 and the ongoing negotiations one of our principal concerns relates to protecting to the greatest extent possible student mobility between Ireland and Northern Ireland, the UK and within the EU and to support our strategy to increase non-EU student flows. Key to the ongoing access of our students to higher education on the island will be the maintenance of the common travel area, and the consequent continuity of fee status and supports for students, in both jurisdictions.
For Irish students wishing to study in Northern Ireland in the 2018/19 academic year I understand that there will not be any changes to their tuition fee status. Student Finance Northern Ireland has also advised that all eligible full-time higher education students, including Irish students, entering higher education in Northern Ireland can get a Student Loan for Tuition Fees.
My Department has confirmed no change in fee status for students domiciled in Northern Ireland who enrol for courses for the 2018/19 academic year in a third level college in Ireland, with no change either in eligibility conditions for the Department’s Free Fee Schemes. Comparable arrangements for an intake of such students for subsequent years will be kept under review in the context of the Brexit negotiations.
167. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of an application by a school (details supplied) for additional school accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19953/18]
View answerI can confirm to the Deputy that my Department is in receipt of application from the school referred to for the provision of additional classroom. The application is currently under consideration and my Department will be in direct contact with the school authorities when the assessment process has concluded.
168. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of schools in a location (details supplied) that are still using prefabricated buildings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20012/18]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department does not hold details relating to the information requested.
As the Deputy will be aware, it is my intention to replace all purchased temporary accommodation with permanent accommodation, where the need is established, over the lifetime of my Department's Capital Programme (2016 to 2021). To enable this development, my Department will be carrying out an assessment of the number of prefabs being used in schools to deliver the curriculum. This will also determine whether or not individual prefabs need to be replaced in the context of the long-term accommodation needs of each individual school. When completed, this assessment will quantify the number of prefabs to be replaced.
It is intended that this assessment when finalised will enable the replacement of such prefabs to commence in 2019. A funding provision of €180 million is being made available from 2019 for this initiative in the programme.
169. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of requests for classroom extensions, sports halls or both for schools at a location (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20013/18]
View answerI can confirm to the Deputy that my Department has received applications for additional accommodation from two schools in County Carlow, one from a Primary school and one from a Post-Primary School.
The application from the Primary school will be assessed and a decision will be conveyed to the school authority as soon as the assessment process has been completed.
In relation to the Post-Primary School, I wish to advise the Deputy, that a building project for this school is included in my Department's 6-Year Construction Programme (2019-2021).
The current status of all building projects, may be viewed on my Department's website www.education.ie – Schools & Colleges - Building Works.
170. Deputy Kate O'Connell asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the post-primary school for 600 pupils in the Dublin 2 and 4 areas will have a dedicated autism unit. [20022/18]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that it is general practice to include a Special Needs Unit in the accommodation brief for new school buildings, unless local circumstances indicate that it will not be required.
171. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills the details of each contract for school bus provision by the length of the journey, number of children and cost of the route by each of the school bus routes in counties Donegal, Cork, Galway and Mayo without identifying the bus operator in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20029/18]
View answerSchool transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department.
Currently over 116,000 children, including almost 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,500 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually at a total cost of almost €190 million in 2017.
I have asked Bus Éireann to reply directly to the Deputy with the detailed information requested.
A referred reply was forwarded to the Deputy under Standing Order 42A.
172. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills the controls his Department exercises in regard to outside groups that are invited by schools to help in delivering various aspects of the curriculum. [20036/18]
View answer173. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department has a memorandum of understanding with national organisations including, but not limited to, national sporting organisations or other outside organisations governing their participation within schools in helping deliver parts of curricula. [20037/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 172 and 173 together.
It is the responsibility of each individual school to select the materials and resources that it will use to support its implementation of any part of the curriculum including SPHE or PE. Where an outside organisation is engaged by a school, they should be engaged in the context of delivering a planned and comprehensive programme in the school. They must not be brought in to replace the schools delivery of the curriculum but to enhance it. Interventions and external inputs should be evaluated by the school principal and teachers in terms of the content, approach, methodology and proposed learning outcomes.
National and international research has consistently shown that the classroom teacher is the best placed professional to work sensitively and consistently with pupils and that s/he can have a powerful impact on influencing pupils’ attitudes, values and behaviour in all aspects of health education in the school setting.
Every school is required to adhere to the Department’s 'Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools' and must ensure that it meets any Garda vetting obligations that arise in respect of persons who work with pupils in the school. My Department provides guidelines to schools on the use of external providers for SPHE in particular. The guidelines were issued to schools in circulars 0022/2010 and circular 0023/2010 for primary and post-primary schools respectively.
In the context of the work my Department is undertaking to develop a Wellbeing Policy Statement for Schools, the guidelines to schools will be revised to provide more comprehensive and strengthened guidance to schools on the effective use of external programmes and facilitators relating to all aspects of Wellbeing.
174. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Education and Skills if adequate plans will be provided for the forthcoming academic year for young students (details supplied) who wish to undertake courses in primary school teaching, and in particular students who had the required minimum points to pursue these courses in 2017 to 2018 but were denied the opportunity due to a lack of places being provided; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20073/18]
View answerThere are 1,000 places available on the Bachelor of Education programme scheduled to commence in September 2018. The places are split between the four Higher Education Institutes who provide the course:
- Marino Institute of Education
- Mary Immaculate College
- DCU Institute of Education
- Froebel Department of Primary and Early Childhood Education, Maynooth University
Applications for the Bachelor of Education programmes are made through the Central Applications Office (CAO). Upon receipt of an application, the CAO provides the student with a randomly generated number, this number only becomes relevant in the event of a tie of points.
The Higher Education Institutions advise the CAO of the number of places available on a particular course. The places are allocated to the students with the highest points. A situation may arise where there are a number of applicants with the same points competing for a few remaining places. The CAO allocates the remaining places to applicants based on their randomly generated number which was provided upon application. The procedure is that the applicants with the highest random numbers are offered the remaining places available and the other applicants are placed at the top of the waiting list.
Details of the random selection system are available on the website of the Central Applications Office.
I have established a Teacher Supply Steering Group which will develop a strategy on teacher supply for coming years to help ensure that there is a sufficient number of teachers available to meet the needs of primary and post primary schools. The Group will consider the issues that impact on teacher supply, including: policies and arrangements for schools and teachers that impact on teacher mobility/supply; promotion of the teaching profession; initial teacher education policy, provision, funding and support; and data/research requirements. The Group will also be looking at the numbers of students entering initial teacher education programmes.
175. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated average and full year cost per apprentice over a calendar year in State-funded craft and consortia led apprenticeships based on the latest data and participation levels. [20096/18]
View answerIt is estimated that the cost of training an apprentice in one of the existing craft apprenticeships is approximately €6,700 per annum and the cost of training an apprentice in one of the new consortia led apprenticeships is approximately €5,100 per annum. The estimated annual cost of new consortia led apprenticeships may be subject to further refinement as greater numbers of these new programmes become operational.
176. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of contractors which have expressed an interest in the construction of a school (details supplied) by the closing date of 3 May 2018; when tenders will be invited for the project; the length of time the tender process will take; when construction will commence on the new school as indicated in the departmental letter to the school in March 2018, which set out the timeframe for the progression of the project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20144/18]
View answerThe major building project referred to by the Deputy is at an advanced stage of architectural planning Stage 2b (Detailed Design), which includes the application for statutory approvals and the preparation of tender documents. All statutory approvals have been secured.
The Stage 2(b) submission has been reviewed by my Department and a letter issued to the school and its Design Team advising them of a timeframe for the progression of this project. This project has been authorised to commence the Pre-Qualification of Contractors.
The pre-qualification and shortlisting of suitable contractors normally takes between 8 and 12 weeks to complete.
Thereafter a the tender process for the awarding of a construction contract for a school building project takes between 7 and 8 months to complete.
177. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 86 of 22 March 2018, if the project brief is finalised in respect of the school; if so, the details of same; when a design team will be appointed for the project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20145/18]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the project brief for the school in question has been finalised and the schedules of accommodation have been issued to the Patron. My Department will be in further contact with the school authority in due course relating to the appointment of a Design Team.
178. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Education and Skills when the process will commence for the appointment of a principal for a school (details supplied) in view of the need to appoint the principal by 1 September 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20147/18]
View answerAs part of the Major School Building Projects announcement in November 2015 by my Department and in view of the continued support for an independent Gaelcholáiste, it was confirmed that a Gaelcholáiste to serve the North Kildare area will open in 2019.
Department approval is given for the appointment of a school Principal from 1 September of the school year prior to the opening of a new school.
The recruitment and appointment of teachers, including Principals, to fill teaching posts is a matter for the individual school authority, subject to procedures agreed under Section 24(3) of the Education Act 1998 (as amended by the Education (Amendment) Act 2012).
179. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the case of a child (details supplied) who has not been able to secure a place in second level school for the past two years will be examined. [20152/18]
View answerMy Department provides for a range of placement options and supports for schools, which have enrolled students with special educational needs, including those with Autism, in order to ensure that wherever a child is enrolled, s/he will have access to an appropriate education.
Such placements facilitate access to individualised education programmes which may draw from a range of appropriate educational interventions, delivered by fully qualified professional teachers, with the support of Special Needs Assistants and the appropriate school curriculum.
My Department therefore provides for a continuum of provision which includes mainstream school placements with additional supports, or for pupils who require more specialist interventions, special class and special school placements.
This network includes 130 ASD early intervention classes, 635 primary ASD classes and 277 post-primary ASD classes in mainstream schools and 125 Special School of which 20 are ASD special schools.
The NCSE, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), in consultation with the relevant education partners, is responsible for planning and co-ordinating the provision of education and support services to children with special educational needs.
Parents/guardians who may need advice or are experiencing difficulties in locating a school placement should contact their local SENO who can assist in identifying an appropriate educational placement for their child. Contact details are available on www.ncse.ie .
The enrolment of a child to a school is a matter, in the first instance, for the parents of the child and the Board of Management of a school. My Department has no role in relation to processing applications for enrolment to schools and it does not maintain details of waiting lists in schools.
Accordingly, the NCSE advises parents, to seek to enrol their child, by applying in writing, to the school/s of their choice as early as possible.
It is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. The selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. Under section 15 (2) (d) of the Education Act 1998, each school is legally obliged to publish its enrolment policy.
Section 29 of the Education Act 1998, provides parents with an appeal process where a board of management of a school or a person acting on behalf of the Board refuses enrolment to a student. Where a school refuses to enrol a pupil, the school is obliged to inform parents of their right under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998 to appeal that decision to either the relevant Educational Training Board or to the Secretary General of this Department.
The NCSE works in collaboration with the Educational Welfare Services (EWS) of the Child and Family Agency which is the statutory agency that can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child or can offer assistance where a child is out of school. The local service is delivered through the national network of Educational Welfare Officers (EWO). Contact details are available at http://www.tusla.ie/get-in-touch/education-and-welfare/ .
I understand from my officials that the parents of the child referred to by the Deputy are seeking a mainstream placement for their child and that a Section 29 appeal has been taken. A decision on this appeal is expected shortly. In the interim, home tuition has been sanctioned for the child.
180. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Education and Skills the provision that has been made to budget for new applications to the school summer works scheme during 2018; if his attention has been drawn to concerns that there are no funds allocated for new applications for summer works; the number of applications for refurbishment that are outstanding by school; the cost of these works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20161/18]
View answerThe Summer Works Scheme is designed to allow schools to carry out small and medium scale building works that will improve and upgrade existing school buildings. This scheme is additional to other capital funding schemes that are operated by the Department such as the additional accommodation scheme, Emergency Works scheme i.e. for projects of such urgency that they would prevent some or all of the school from opening, and Minor Works schemes.
The Summer Works Scheme (SWS) is a multi-annual Scheme. Over 1,650 schools, nearly 50% of schools, applied for inclusion under the current round of the scheme which reflects a very high demand.
Over 700 applications in Categories 7-10, at a cost of just over €52 million have not been reached to date. However, almost €80 million has been approved under the current round of the Scheme, in respect of 635 school projects, 464 primary and 171 post-primary schools, for Gas, electrical upgrades, mechanical, sanitation and roof improvement works.. Details of the successful school applicants, are published on the Department's website www.education.ie .
In relation to the Summer Works Scheme 2018, over €25 million will be spent on summer works projects in 2018. This expenditure will enable the remaining approved improvement works for 178 schools nationwide to be completed. These works will be carried out by the schools themselves on a devolved basis mainly over the summer months, so the disruption to students, teachers and other school staff will be kept to a minimum.
Furthermore, the Department intends to engage with the relevant education partners in relation to giving schools a better lead-in period for planning and delivering projects under the summer works scheme from 2019 onwards. While the Summer Works Scheme is hugely successful in enabling small scale refurbishment works to be done on a devolved basis, the Department considers that the operation of the scheme could be improved by providing a better lead-in period for schools rather than in Quarter 2 as in previous years. This will also help ensure that works done under the Summer Works Scheme fit better with any wider refurbishment/energy retrofit plans that may be done at schools under the increased funding provided in the National Development Plan. The engagement with education partners will commence shortly and will assist in developing a better timeline for the planning and delivery of summer works projects for 2019 onwards.
