Written Answers Nos. 349-368
349. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the major building project for a school (details supplied); the specific details in terms of target dates of commencement and completion; the details of the temporary accommodation that will be provided during the construction phase; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1081/19]
View answerThe school to which the Deputy refers is at an advanced stage of the tender process. The Board of Management were recently authorised to issue the Letter of Intent to the preferred tenderer. Subject to no issues arising it is anticipated that construction will commence in the first quarter of 2019.
With regards temporary accommodation to be provided on site by the contractor during the construction phase, this will be configured in two blocks and will provide for: 8 general classrooms, 4 SET rooms, 2 offices, 2 toilets and 1 shower.
350. Deputy Jan O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of persons that attended adult literacy and numeracy classes in each of the 16 education and training boards, ETBs in the past four years; the amount of funding spent on adult literacy and numeracy tuition in each ETB for each of those years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1176/19]
View answerDetails of the allocation of funding for adult literacy programmes and total number of beneficiaries in the past four years are outlined in the tables in the following link.
351. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a school (details supplied) will retain its teacher allocation in view of the fact that its teacher-pupil ratio is higher than other DEIS 1 schools in the area. [1189/19]
View answerDEIS Urban Band 1 have a more favourable staffing schedule than other schools. DEIS Urban Band 1 junior schools operate on a general average of 1 teacher for every 20 pupils. Schools with senior classes with DEIS Urban Band 1 status operate on a general average of 1 teacher for every 24 pupils. DEIS Urban Band 1 vertical schools, such as the school referred to by the Deputy, operate on a general average of 1 teacher for every 22 pupils.
The school referred to by the Deputy has a mainstream staffing of Principal and 2 classroom teachers and returned an enrolment of 61 for 30th September 2018. As a result, the school is operating on an average pupil teacher ratio of 1 classroom teacher to every 20.33 pupils, which is lower than the average allocation ratio of 22:1.
The general staffing allocation arrangements for 2019/20 are currently being finalised and will be available on my Department’s website next month. At that stage, schools will be able to establish their staffing for the coming school year.
352. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new registrations on craft based apprenticeships in 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1201/19]
View answer353. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new apprenticeship programmes introduced in 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1202/19]
View answer354. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of new registrations on new apprenticeships programmes in 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1203/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 352 to 354, inclusive, together.
The information requested by the Deputy is set out on the following tabular statement.
|
Apprenticeship Type |
Number of Programmes introduced in 2018 |
Number of Registrations in 2018 |
|
New consortia |
9 |
590 |
|
Craft |
n/a |
5,058 |
|
Total |
9 |
5,648 |
355. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the redevelopment of a barracks (details supplied); his plans for the site; the reason for the delay in the redevelopment plans; when proposals are likely to progress further; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1242/19]
View answerI wish to confirm to the Deputy that my Department is continuing to engage with the local Education and Training Board (ETB) relating to a proposed project on the site to which she refers. My Department will be in further contact with the ETB relating to the proposed project.
356. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Education and Skills if funding will be provided to a school (details supplied) in County Kildare to complete a project. [1253/19]
View answerThe school referred to by the Deputy has already received the grant funding in question. The relevant start-up grant is provided at the time of the establishment of a new ASD class in a school for the purpose of setting up that class. It is a one-off grant in that context and has been provided to the school in respect of all the ASD classes sanctioned for it.
My officials have informed the school that the Department is not in a position to provide a further grant in those circumstances. The school has subsequently submitted an appeal to the Department which will be given due consideration and responded to in due course.
357. Deputy Jack Chambers asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the difficulties faced by teachers who have professionally trained abroad in trying to secure teaching posts here; the efforts under way to address the issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1290/19]
View answerThe Teaching Council is the body with statutory authority to register teachers in this State, including those who have professionally trained abroad.
A person who has completed a teacher education qualification outside the State and is seeking to register with the Teaching Council must have their qualifications assessed to determine that they are comparable and equivalent to accredited qualifications in Ireland. Where shortfalls are identified, a teacher may seek the advice of the Teaching Council as to how the shortfalls should be addressed.
The Teaching Council considers applications from teachers who qualified outside Ireland, either in another EU/EEA member state or outside the EU/EEA, who are deemed fully qualified in the member state or home country. Each application is assessed individually by the Council.
EU/ EEA qualified teachers, in accordance with EU Directive 2005/36/EC, are entitled to have their qualifications recognised in all other member states. This recognition may be granted subject to conditions, including addressing any shortfalls. The Teaching Council is the competent authority in Ireland for assessing applications from people who qualified as teachers in other EU/EEA countries.
Currently the assessment and registration process for teachers qualified outside of Ireland may take up to 12 weeks from receipt of all application documentation and depending on the time of year. However one of the actions in the Teacher Supply Action Plan, which I published in November 2018, is for the Teaching Council to develop a more streamlined process for the registration of teachers qualified in jurisdictions outside the State. A number of approaches are being considered by the Council to streamline the registration process and achieve this action.
Further information on the registration requirement for teachers wishing to teach in Ireland are available on the teaching Council website at www.teachingcouncil.ie.
358. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 241 of 18 September 2018, if the accommodation needs of a school (details supplied) have been agreed; when a design team will be appointed for the project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1330/19]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, a building project for the school to which he refers is included in my Department's 6 Year Construction Programme. In the context of progressing the building project, my Department undertook a technical site visit to the school.
Following the visit, my Department wrote to the school authority relating to the school's interim accommodation needs. The school subsequently advised that further consideration was needed on the matter and that they would revert to my Department in due course. A response is awaited, My Department has since written to the school seeking an indication as to when the school expects to be in a position to respond.
359. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department has received the pre-qualification report in relation to the building of a school (details supplied); if so, if it has been approved; when tenders will be invited for the project from the shortlist of contractors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1331/19]
View answerThe major building project referred to by the Deputy is currently at Stage 2b - Detailed Design.
The pre-qualification process to select a shortlist of suitable contractors is now complete and the Design Team is currently completing work to ensure the new school building is NZEB compliant.
Once this work is complete the Department will be in contact with the Board of Management with a view to progressing the project to tender stage.
A tender stage normally takes between 7 and 8 months to complete.
360. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the pre-qualification process for a school (details supplied) has been concluded; if so, if tenders have been invited for the project from the shortlist of contractors; if so, the closing date for receipt of tenders; when construction will commence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1332/19]
View answerThe major building project referred to by the Deputy is at an advanced stage of architectural planning, Stage 2(b) - Detailed Design which includes the application for Planning Permission, Fire Cert and Disability Access Cert and the preparation of tender documents. All statutory approvals have been secured.
The outcome of the pre-qualification process has been notified to contractors who expressed interest in tendering for this project. Feedback and issues arising from same are currently being dealt with by the school and its Design Team. When this process has concluded the project will then be progressed to tender stage.
A tender stage normally takes between 7 and 8 months to complete.
361. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the pre-qualification report for a school (details supplied) has been received; if the report has been approved; if tenders have been invited from the shortlist of contractors; if so, the closing date for receipt of tenders for the project; when construction will commence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1333/19]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, the project to which he refers has been devolved for delivery to Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB).
The pre-qualification process for the project has now been completed by KWETB. Approval has been given for KWETB to proceed to issue tender documents to the shortlisted contractors in that respect. These can be expected to issue before the end of this quarter.
At this point, it is not possible to provide an accurate timeline either for completion of the tender process or for completion of any later stages of the project.
362. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the required clarifications have been received from the vendor of the site for schools (details supplied); if satisfactory, if a design team will be appointed for both projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1334/19]
View answerAs previously confirmed to the Deputy, there is ongoing close engagement with Kildare County Council and discussions with the landowner of the proposed site. Due to commercial sensitivities relating to site acquisitions in general, I am not in a position to provide further details at this time.
363. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a project manager has been procured for the ADAPT programme; if so, when the manager will contact a school (details supplied) to progress its school building project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1335/19]
View answerA building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is included in my Department’s 6 year Construction Programme.
A project brief has been finalised and the project will be delivered via the ADAPT programme. The ADAPT programme uses a professional external Project Manager to coordinate and drive the respective design teams on each project.
In this regard, a tender competition is in train to establish a Project Manager framework which is expected to be in place by early March. The formulation of tender documentation is underway and once the framework has been established a tender exercise will be carried out to appoint a Project Manager for this particular project.
All schools with projects on the ADAPT programme will be contacted shortly by my Department to provide an update on the status of their respective project. I wish to confirm to the Deputy that my Department is committed to providing a new school building for the school in question.
364. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the pre-qualification report for a school (details supplied) has been received; if so, if it has been approved; when tenders will be invited for the project from the shortlist of contractors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1336/19]
View answerThe process of Pre-Qualification of contractors for the project in question is underway. For this particular project, pre-qualification of reserved specialists for the mechanical and electrical works is also required. The Pre-qualification process culminates in the compilation of shortlists of suitable candidates for each respective discipline.
The shortlist was submitted to my Department for review on January 11th 2019.
When this review is complete the project will then be progressed to tender stage which normally takes between 7 and 8 months to complete.
This project is included in the Department of Education and Skills' 6 year construction programme.
365. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a decision has been made on the application by a school (details supplied) to become co-educational; if not, the issues delaying the sanctioning; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1337/19]
View answerI can confirm to the Deputy that my Department has received an application from the Patron of the school in question for a change of status.
The application is currently under consideration and my Department will be in further contact with the Patron once a decision has been reached.
366. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if tenders have been invited for the completion of the Maynooth Education Campus, Maynooth, County Kildare; the number of contractors from which tenders have been sought; the closing date for receipt of tenders for the project; when it is envisaged the successful contractor will be on site; if the completion date remains as June 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1340/19]
View answer391. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position in regard to Maynooth Education Campus having particular regard to the urgent need arising from the burgeoning population; the extent to which he expects work to proceed at an early date towards completion in line with expectations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1743/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 366 and 391 together.
As the Deputies will be aware, the project to which they refer has been devolved for delivery to Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB).
A contractor is currently on site on the Maynooth campus completing the external fabric of both school buildings. Separately, the process of appointing a replacement contractor to complete the works is well underway. A pre-qualification process in that respect has been completed.
Tender documents are expected to issue to the shortlisted contractors in the next fortnight or so with a view to having a contractor on site in Q2, 2019. It is fully expected that the buildings will be available for occupation prior to September 2020.
367. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 137 of 21 November 2018, if agreement has been reached on a new site for the school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1341/19]
View answerAs previously confirmed to the Deputy, a potential site for the school to which the Deputy refers has been identified and discussions are ongoing. Due to commercial sensitivities relating to site acquisitions in general, I am not in a position to provide further details at this time.
368. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 115 of 9 October 2018, if tenders have been sought for the appointment of a design team for a school (details supplied); if so, the closing date for receipt of tenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1343/19]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that the project to which he refers has been devolved for delivery to Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB).
My Department has given approval to KWETB to proceed with the appointment of a Design Team for the project. That process is currently underway.
