Written Answers Nos. 954-973
954. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Education the number of students and schools by county that have participated in or plan to participate in the July provision; the number of teaching staff who have signed up to provide the cover in each of the years 2018 to 2020 and to date in 2021, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39500/21]
View answerIn May 2021 the Government announced a package of supports to allow primary and post primary to offer a summer programme for students with complex special educational needs and those at greatest risk of educational disadvantage, as a COVID-19 pandemic response measure, for summer 2021.
The total funding available to provide summer programmes this year is up to €40 million, a one hundred per cent increase on the allocation for summer programmes in 2020.
The programme was developed following extensive engagement with education stakeholders, parent and disability advocacy groups.
The programme aims are to support pupils to maintain their connection with education, to build their confidence and increase their motivation, promote wellbeing and for those who are at key transition stages, help to ensure that they continue their education journey in September either in school or in further/higher education or training.
The programmes on offer this summer include a new 2-3 week summer programme available to all primary schools and an expansion of the existing programmes in special schools and classes and in DEIS schools.
Schools were required to register their interest in participating as of 25 June 2021. The registrations as of this closing date are as follows:
Post primary (no of schemes proposed to be run)
|
Inclusion programme |
Special classes |
|
120 |
4 |
A total of 124 post primary schools have registered
Primary (number of schemes proposed to be run)
|
Special Class Programme |
Special School |
Inclusion Programme |
DEIS Primary School Literacy and Numeracy Camps |
|
356 |
48 |
466 |
352* |
A total of 844 primary schools (including special schools have registered as providing at least one scheme.
Totals
|
Total Post-Primary Schemes |
Total Schemes |
|
124 |
1346 |
A total of 968 primary and post primary schools registered for the programme
The final list of schools which participate in the 2021 summer education programme will not be available until after the programmes have concluded and claim forms have been processed by the Department. At that stage the full list of schools, including details of the breakdown of participating schools per county, can be made available.
Staff participation in the programme in 2018, 2019 and 2020 is as follows:
|
- |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
|
School Programme:TeachersSNAs |
9662,037 |
6401,454 |
7611,600.5 |
|
Home ProgrammeTeachersSNAs |
4631 N/A |
6158N/A |
5,3431,386* |
* SNAs were permitted to participate in the home-based programme programme for the first time in 2020
Staff figures for 2021 will not be available until September for the school-based programme, and early November for the home-based programme.
955. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education if the pension entitlement of a person (details supplied) and records of teaching placement from 1984 to 1985 will be urgently investigated. [39512/21]
View answerThe matter to which the Deputy refers was initially raised by the pension scheme member directly with the Pension Unit of my Department on 30th June 2021.
I am pleased to advise that since that date of contact, the relevant officers in the Pension Unit are actively engaging with the pension scheme member to address the issue and will continue to do so with an expectation that the case will be resolved imminently.
956. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Education further to Parliamentary Question No. 192 of 14 July 2021, if specific examples will be provided of the steps she will take to rectify the matter given the admission that a more strategic approach is required for the training of SNAs. [39542/21]
View answerThe Government will invest in the region €2bn this year in supporting children with special needs which is over 20% of the total Education budget. By the end of this year there will be 18,000 Special Needs Assistants employed in our schools.
Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) play a huge role in supporting the inclusion of pupils with significant care needs in education and in school life. This is the first national training programme for SNAs employed in our schools and is tailored to their needs. There is no cost to serving SNAs working in schools. This course is fully funded by the Department of Education.
€2.45m will be allocated to this programme over the next 4 year period based on a full uptake of 3,500 SNAs. The first cohort of 500 SNAs enrolled in January and this phase was oversubscribed.
The Department is committed to the development of a strategic framework for SNAs that will identify need and provide quality training in a timely manner. In order to begin providing a foundation for this, it was decided that initial priority should be given to the development of a training programme for SNAs who may not have had a recent opportunity to access a training programme tailored to their role previously. The initial aim of the new programme would be to provide training and not a professional qualification.
This new programme aims to enhance the knowledge, skills and expertise of SNAs whose work is central to the inclusion of students with additional care and complex needs in school life.
The course is delivered by University College Dublin (UCD) School of Education, in conjunction with UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems. UCD has a strong reputation in the world of education and training. It brings with it a wealth of experience and research knowledge in the training and has very strong quality assurance arrangements for its programmes. Feedback from programme participants is a key feature of this quality assurance process.
The programme will be evaluated on completion and the outcome will inform the approach to the training of SNAs in the future.
957. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Education further to Parliamentary Question No. 787 of 15 July 2021 in respect to the €3.023 million cost of hygiene measures as part of the school transport scheme in 2020, the amount allocated to and spent by Bus Éireann; and the amount allocated to and spent by private operators respectively. [39567/21]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.
Bus Éireann has advised that an amount of €610,000 was spent in the 2020/21 school year on Bus Éireann’s own school transport services toward the cost of Covid-19 hygiene measures and €2,413,000 was spent by private contractors who operated school transport on behalf of my Department in that same year. The allowance afforded to private operators for delivering enhanced hygiene requirements was a contribution to overall costs in view of the fact that these vehicles engage in other private trips outside of contracted hours for school transport.
958. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Education the status of the acquisition of a zoned school site at a location (details supplied); the acquisition costs; the timeline for delivery of this permanent school site; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39620/21]
View answerThe acquisition of a zoned school site at Corballis, Donabate - to accommodate a permanent school building is at an advanced stage of legal conveyancing. The project is also dependent on the landowner's submission of an SHD application, out of which the need for the school is arising. Department officials are engaging with the Landowner regarding the potential development of the site. I am unable to elaborate any further due to the commercial sensitivities of site acquisitions in general.
959. Deputy Francis Noel Duffy asked the Minister for Education her plans on using the zoned school site on Stocking Avenue; if there is a timeframe for when plans will be developed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39669/21]
View answerSchool sites are zoned in statutory plans in order to cater for projected future educational requirements in a community. The timing of activating the use of a zoned school site is dependent on the pace and nature of population growth in an area.
There has been significant recent population growth in the area surrounding Stocking Avenue and more growth is projected in the context of the statutory development plan for the area. My Department is monitoring population growth in the area and its impact on school place requirements in order to assess the requirement to provide a new school. At this point it is not possible to provide a timeframe for when plans will be developed but the matter is being kept under active review.
960. Deputy Francis Noel Duffy asked the Minister for Education if she will allocate the full additional special education teaching hours to a school (details supplied) needed as a result of being a developing school and that has a higher than average enrolment of children with additional needs and has measurably fewer resource teaching hours than equivalent developed schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39670/21]
View answerA new model for allocating Special Education Teachers to mainstream schools was introduced from September 2017, based on the profiled needs of schools.
The allocations were updated for schools with effect from September 2019, with limited readjustments being applied for at that time.
The allocations have remained in place for the 2019/20 and 2020/21 school years, with some adjustments made over the course of the model for schools which achieved developing status, or successfully appealed on the grounds of exceptional circumstances arising in their schools. Allocations are also provided for new schools which open each year.
DES Circulars 007 and 008 2019, stated that the allocations being made for 2019 would initially remain in place for a minimum of two years, following which, revised profiled allocations would be considered for schools from September 2021.
The NCSE Policy advice ‘A Proposed new Model for Allocating Teaching Resources for Students with Special Educational Needs (2014)’ on which the SET allocation model is based, recommended that ‘the additional teaching supports be left in place initially for a two-year period. As the new model becomes embedded in the system, this may be extended to three years.’
In order to minimise disruption for schools, in the current circumstances, and to provide for continuity of allocations, the Minister for Special Education and Inclusion and the Minister for Education have agreed to maintain the existing Special Education Teacher Allocations for schools for the 2021/22 school year, with re profiled allocations now due to be made from September 2022.
Additional allocations will continue to be made for new schools, schools which achieve developing status, or for exceptional circumstances arising in schools, in the interim.
961. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Education the status of tender progression for a school project (details supplied). [39678/21]
View answerThe school building project referred to by the Deputy is being delivered under my Department’s Design and Build Programme.
My Department has completed the tender process for the establishment of a new framework of contractors for the delivery of a bundle of Design and Build projects. In June 2021, the school building project referred to by the Deputy was included in a bundle of projects which was tendered to the new framework.
The original date for the tender returns was the 8th September 2021, an extension of time was recently requested by the tenderers. My Department has agreed to this extension, the closing date for tenders has now been extended by four weeks.
962. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Education if her attention has been drawn to the circular sent which advised schools if they could not find a substitute teacher that a non-mainstream class teacher should be used, a non-mainstream class teacher in primary schools are special education teachers (details supplied); and if it will be ensured that the hours built up due to be used for special needs education can be brought forward and used in the next school year. [39680/21]
View answerDES Circular 0013/2017 for primary schools and 0014/2017 for post primary schools set out the details of the model for allocating special education teachers to schools. DES Circulars 007 and 008 of 2019 set out how the allocations for schools are being updated from September 2019.
The Special Education Teacher allocation process provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile.
Under the allocation model, schools are provided with a total allocation for special education needs support based on their school profile.
The provision of a profiled allocation is designed to give a fairer allocation for each school which recognises that all schools need an allocation for special needs support, but which provides a graduated allocation which takes into account the actual level of need in each school.
In order to minimise disruption for schools, in the current circumstances, and to provide for continuity of allocations, the Minister for Education and the Minister for Special Education and Inclusion have agreed to maintain the existing Special Education Teacher Allocations for schools for the 2021/22 school year, with re profiled allocations now due to be made from September 2022.
Additional allocations will continue to be made for new schools, schools which achieve developing status, or for exceptional circumstances arising in schools, in the interim.
The criteria for qualification for mainstream school developing school posts are set out in the Primary and Post Primary School Staffing Schedule for the 2021/22 school year.
A process is available where schools can seek a review of their allocations by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), including the utilisation of their allocations, in circumstances where a school considers that very exceptional circumstances have arisen subsequent to the development of the profile.
If a school wishes to make an exceptional needs review, they may do so at the following link: https://ncse.ie/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Primary-Schools-Review-Application-2020.doc
In relation to your query regarding the use of non-mainstream teachers to cover an absence, circular letter 45/2020 sets out that sequence for a school to access substitutes. The aim is to get a substitute firstly from:
- a supply panel,
- the school’s own panel of regular substitutes or
- from the ‘Text a Sub’ portal.
When these arrangements have been exhausted and a substitute is still needed in an emergency situation to protect the class bubble, it is outlined in the circular that a school can use other non-mainstream teachers to cover the absence.
This arrangement is an interim measure and the school must continue to seek a substitute to cover the absence. It is only in these types of instances that the school can use other non-mainstream teachers.
Schools should seek to minimise the amount of times that SET teachers are used for substitution purposes and keep a record of such instances. The SET should also not be used to cover long term absences.
Any loss of special education teaching support by students should be made up at the first available opportunity by employing additional teaching resources to make up for the shortfall. Hours accumulated in any given school year must be utilised in the same school year and there is no facility to carryover hours from one school year to the next.
Special education teachers may only be used as a substitute in an emergency as outlined above.
963. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education the number of classes in the 2020-2021 school year at primary school level with 30 pupils or above by county in tabular form. [39687/21]
View answerPlease find attached information for the academic year 2020/2021 - the most recent available data.
The figures are based on mainstream classes in mainstream schools and were collated from the relevant Class Size tables published on the DES website and can be found at the link below; www.education.ie/en/Publications/Statistics/Data-on-Individual-Schools/primary/ .
|
Local Authority |
Number of Classes >= 30 |
|
Carlow County Council |
37 |
|
Cavan County Council |
35 |
|
Clare County Council |
74 |
|
Cork City Council |
41 |
|
Cork County Council |
253 |
|
Donegal County Council |
85 |
|
Dublin City Council |
148 |
|
Dun Laoghaire Rathdown |
113 |
|
Fingal County Council |
125 |
|
Galway City Council |
24 |
|
Galway County Council |
118 |
|
Kerry County Council |
79 |
|
Kildare County Council |
129 |
|
Kilkenny County Council |
56 |
|
Laois County Council |
32 |
|
Leitrim County Council |
18 |
|
Limerick City & County Council |
124 |
|
Longford County Council |
20 |
|
Louth County Council |
89 |
|
Mayo County Council |
69 |
|
Meath County Council |
157 |
|
Monaghan County Council |
44 |
|
Offaly County Council |
46 |
|
Roscommon County Council |
26 |
|
Sligo County Council |
38 |
|
South Dublin County Council |
169 |
|
Tipperary County Council |
74 |
|
Waterford City & County Council |
60 |
|
Westmeath County Council |
65 |
|
Wexford County Council |
74 |
|
Wicklow County Council |
83 |
|
Grand Total |
2505 |
964. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Education if education training boards should strive towards having a gender balance in its membership; if he has reviewed the membership of all education training boards to ensure gender balance; if he will be reviewing the education training boards codes of practice to ensure gender balance is being achieved; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39691/21]
View answerThe arrangements for the membership of Education and Training Boards (ETBs), including gender balance, are governed by section 30 of the Education and Training Board Act 2013.
In accordance with that section, each ETB board is made of up 21 members as follows:
- 12 members elected by the relevant local authority;
- 2 members elected by ETB staff;
- 2 members appointed by the ETB from nominees of a National Parents Association(s) specified by the Minister;
- 5 members appointed by the ETB from bodies specified by the Minister which have a special interest in, or knowledge of education.
Section 30 also includes specific provisions regarding gender balance in each of the above categories of membership.
Accordingly, in accordance with section 30, the regulations for the election of the twelve local authority members provide that, in so far as is practicable, at least 40 per cent shall be women and at least 40 per cent shall be men and the regulations for the election of the two staff members provide for the election of one male and one female staff member.
Section 30 also requires that the nominees of the national association of parents shall be one man and one woman and that of the five members from the nominated bodies, at least two must be women and two must be men.
965. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education if the medical card verification system used for school transport tickets which is currently unavailable will be resolved in time to process payments before the closing date of 30 July 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38657/21]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.
Owing to the cybersecurity attack on the HSE systems recently, Bus Éireann have been unable to offer the Medical Card verification system as part of the school transport payment and are working closely with the HSE team to find a resolution to this.
In the meantime Bus Éireann will roll forward the medical card details used successfully for payment last year as payment for 21/22 school transport tickets, where children continue to be eligible for transport.
This means the following for families:
- Families are not required to enter their medical card as payment where the same medical card was used successfully last year. The child’s existing medical card will be processed as payment for the school transport ticket for the 2021/22 school year. A ticket will issue automatically in the coming weeks.
- Families can access their account and view the details that have been applied.
- Where families have other children without a medical card, they will need to pay the charges due before Friday 30th July. Families account balances will be updated to reflect the medical card applied.
- Should a family have a new application for a child for the 2021/22 school year, and did not use a medical card last year, they can enter the medical card for this child and it will be validated later.
More information is available at buseireann.ie/schooltransport
The closing date for payment for School Transport tickets for the 2021/22 school year is Friday 30th July 2021. The Bus Éireann payment portal will then close and families will not be able to apply or pay for a ticket until it reopens on the 20th August. This is to allow for planning of services for the new school year. Applications or payments made after the deadline date will be deemed late and families may not be guaranteed a seat at that stage.
966. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Education if a progress report will be provided on the Programme for Government commitment to fully implement the access and inclusion model; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39466/21]
View answerThe School Inclusion Model (SIM) is based on policy advice from the National Council for Special Education based on the principle of providing the right support at the right time delivered by a range of personnel with relevant qualifications and skill-sets. Its purpose is to help students achieve better outcomes. Independent evaluation is a central part of the project and the outcome will inform future policy on extending the SIM. The project includes a number of elements:
- Provision of in-school therapies (speech and language, occupational)
- Allocation of SNAs on a frontloaded basis
- Additional professional supports for the school including psychology, behavioural and professional development
- Training of SNAs
In February 2019, the Government approved the trialling of the Model for the 2019/20 school year. Initially designed as a one year pilot involving up to 75 participating schools in the CHO 7 region, it was interrupted by Covid-19 with the closure of schools and the diversion of HSE therapists from the project to Covid related work. It was then extended to the 2020/21 school year which has also been interrupted by Covid.
Progress has been made on aspects of the Model but much remains to be done in terms of in-school implementation and evaluation.
As part of the 2021 Budget measures, funding is being made available to extend the School Inclusion Model to two other areas in 2021.
Planning is underway on the arrangements for the continuation and expansion of SIM and I expect to be in a position to make an announcement on the matter shortly.
967. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Education the average, median, maximum and minimum primary school class sizes for each council area in each of the years 2017 to 2020 and to date in 2021, in tabular form. [39761/21]
View answerPlease find attached requested information for Primary Schools for the years 2017-2020 inclusive, 2020-2021 is the most recent data available.
The figures are based on mainstream classes in mainstream schools and were collated from the relevant Class Size tables published on the DES website and can be found at the link below;
www.education.ie/en/Publications/Statistics/Data-on-Individual-Schools/primary/.
data.oireachtas.ie/ie/oireachtas/debates/questions/supportingDocumentation/2021-07-27_pq967-27-7-21_en.xlsx.
968. Deputy Joe Flaherty asked the Minister for Education if she will engage with Bus Éireann and review the situation in which drivers over 70 years of age are prohibited from driving school buses (details supplied); and if the rule will be eased for at least three years and until such time as Covid-19 and capacity restrictions have ceased. [39778/21]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. In the 2020/2021 school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.
It is Bus Éireann company policy that normal retirement age for all Bus Éireann staff is currently 66 years. However Bus Éireann part-time School Bus Drivers and drivers nominated by private operators who operate service as part of the School Transport scheme may continue to perform in the role provided they hold the requisite licence and satisfy an annual medical examination until they retire at age 70.
This policy and criteria is applied to all drivers who provide school transport services on behalf of Bus Éireann equally.
969. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education if a review was received in relation to a SNA allocation for a child (details supplied) in County Donegal; if supporting evidence was considered in previous reviews; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39783/21]
View answerThe NCSE has responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of SNAs and reviews.
The Special Needs Assistant (SNA) scheme is designed to provide schools with additional adult support staff who can assist children with special educational needs who also have additional and significant care needs. Such support is provided in order to facilitate the attendance of those pupils at school and also to minimise disruption to class or teaching time for the pupils concerned, or for their peers, and with a view to developing their independent living skills.
SNAs are not allocated to individual children but to schools as a school based resource. The deployment of SNAs within schools is a matter for the individual Principal/Board of Management of the school. 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.
In light of the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the introduction of the new Frontloaded Allocation Model for SNAs for students in mainstream classes in primary and post -primary schools is to be deferred for a further year to the beginning of the 2022/23 school year.
In order to minimise disruption for schools, in the current circumstances, and to provide for continuity of allocations the following arrangements for the allocation of Special Needs Assistants for mainstream classes for the 2021/22 school year:
- Existing mainstream class SNA allocations in schools on 30 April 2021 will be maintained and will automatically rollover into the 2021/22 school year.
- No school will therefore receive an allocation less than that which they had on 30 April 2021.
- SNAs currently in mainstream settings can continue in post for the next school year in the normal way.
- Priority consideration will now be given by the NCSE to applications for increased support for the 2021/22 school year, in particular, applications from schools with no SNAs and developing schools will be prioritised. Determinations will be made before 30 June. Other applications will be processed in order of date received.
As in previous years, where circumstances change during the course of the 2021/22 school year that materially increase the level of care need in a school to the extent that the school can clearly demonstrate that it cannot be met within the existing SNA allocation, the school may apply to the NCSE for a review. Detailed information on the NCSE exceptional review process is published on the NCSE website https://ncse.ie/for-schools.
The NCSE have published the SNA allocations on their website www.ncse.ie.
SNA allocations for special classes and special schools are not affected by this arrangement.
Circular 0029/2021 has been published and advises schools of the arrangements for the allocation of SNAs for the 2021/22 school year. Provisions set out in Circular 0030/2020 has been extended for the 2021/22 school year.
Circulars 29/2021 and 30/2020 are available on the Departments website.
My Department does not have a role in making individual school determinations. Accordingly your question has been forwarded to the NCSE for direct reply.
970. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Education if unvaccinated pregnant teachers and SNAs will be required to attend classrooms when schools reopen; the risk assessment undertaken for same; the steps she is taking to ensure their safety; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39787/21]
View answerThe current COVID-19 arrangements in place for teachers and Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) are outlined in my Department’s Circular Letter 0021/2021. The Circular caters for special leave with pay arrangements where a teacher/SNA has been advised to self-isolate and cannot attend the workplace. It also caters for the working arrangements where a teacher/SNA has been advised by the HSE to restrict their movements or where the teacher/SNA has been categorised by the Occupational Health Service (OHS) as at a very high risk of serious illness from contracting COVID-19. In both these cases, the teacher/SNA remains available for work and must be facilitated by the employer to work remotely i.e. work from home. Upon the reopening of schools in March 2021, a pregnant teacher/SNA was advised by my Department to work remotely, pending further clarification from the HSE.
On the 12th July 2021, the HSE published ‘Education Sector Guidance on Employees in the COVID-19 Higher Risk Categories, including Pregnant Employees’. Based on this HSE Guidance my Department’s Information Note TC 0025/2021 published on 15th July sets out the working arrangements for the ‘Very High Risk’ and also the pregnant teachers/SNAs for the 2021/22 school year which states:
2.1 A pregnant employee who has any of the medical conditions as listed on the HSE website under ‘Very high risk groups (extremely vulnerable)’ should follow the process as detailed at paragraph 4.1 of Circular 0021/2021, with regard to a COVID-19 Health Risk Categorisation assessment.
2.2 Based on the HSE Guidance for the education sector, a pregnant employee up to 14 weeks gestation, who is medically fit for work can safely attend the workplace, unless they are categorised by the OHS as ‘Very High Risk’ due to an underlying medical condition unrelated to their pregnancy.
2.3 The recent HSE Guidance for the education sector advises that all pregnant employees should submit a COVID-19 Risk Assessment Questionnaire to the OHS before the end of their first trimester. The process as detailed at paragraph 4.1 of Circular 0021/2021 should be followed.
2.4 Based on the HSE Guidance, the OHS will take account of whether the pregnant employee has ‘significant vaccine protection’ at the time of the OHS assessment.
2.5 From 14 weeks gestation, a pregnant employee who:
(a) Does not yet have ‘significant vaccine protection’ and has no underlying medical condition, will be categorised by the OHS as ‘High Risk’ and must attend the workplace, following a workplace pregnancy risk assessment, if she is medically fit for work.
(b) Does not yet have ‘significant vaccine protection’, and has an underlying medical condition, she will be categorised by the OHS as either ‘High Risk’ or ‘Very High Risk’, based on most up to date HSE advice for higher risk groups. Where the employee is categorised by the OHS as ‘High Risk’ she must attend the workplace, following a workplace pregnancy risk assessment, if she is medically fit for work. Where she is categorised by the OHS as ‘Very High Risk’, she remains available for work and the employer must facilitate alternative working arrangements i.e. work from home.
The Government’s Work Safely Protocol published on 14th May, 2021 is a revision of the Return to Work Safely Protocol to reflect the Government’s Plan for Living with COVID-19. The revised Protocol incorporates the current advice on the Public Health measures and sets out the measures required in the workplace to prevent the spread of COVID-19, to facilitate the re-opening of workplaces following temporary closures and the ongoing safe operation of those workplaces. Employers must ensure that all work premises have implemented robust pre-return to workplace procedures and that all procedures comply with the Work Safely Protocol.
971. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Education if medically vulnerable schoolchildren will be supported to undertake remote learning when schools reopen; if medically vulnerable teachers could become virtual learning facilitators for these children and in this way accommodate the needs of both vulnerable children and teachers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39788/21]
View answerSchools have put significant measures in place to reduce the risk of coronavirus being transmitted to/within the school and significant funding has been provided to support schools in this respect. The evidence to date from a public health perspective is that schools are low risk environments. The approach to Covid-19 in schools is led by the advice and guidance of the HSE Public Health.
The HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) has issued specific advice about children attending school in the context of Covid-19. This advice covers both children with underlying medical conditions and children living with family members with underlying conditions. For all children, care should continue to be taken to reduce transmission through the measures promoted by HPSC.
The HPSC advice advises that children with immediate family members, including parents, in both the ‘high risk’ and ‘very high risk’ categories can return to school and it is important for the child’s overall well-being. This is consistent with public health advice internationally in relation to at-risk family members. The priority is that the household continues to follow all current advice on how to minimise the risk of coronavirus, through regular hand washing, etc.
My Department has also published guidance to support schools in making adapted education provision for students with an underlying medical condition who cannot return to school because they are medically certified as being at very high risk to COVID-19.
It is planned that all schools will return fully at the end of August/early September in line with their normal planned reopening times. Schools have been advised that they should continue to operate with the current infection prevention and control measures in place to support their safe operation during COVID-19 when they reopen in the new term. Schools will continue to be supported in terms of the additional resources necessary to provide for these measures.
The Department will also undertake a communications campaign with parents and students/pupils in advance of school reopening to inform and remind them of the arrangements in place in schools operating during Covid-19. This will include specifically targeted information at new pupils/students entering primary and post-primary schools to ensure they are familiar with the new arrangements.
972. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Education the funding that will be made available to a school (details supplied) to upgrade its existing building; and if the school is included in the capital programme for an extension or new build. [39795/21]
View answerAn application under my Department’s Additional School Accommodation (ASA) Scheme was recently received from the school referred by the Deputy for a new school building incorporating an ASD Unit. While the application for an ASD Unit will be considered under the ASA Scheme and the school authority informed of the outcome, the application for a new school building cannot be considered as it is outside the remit of the Scheme.
However, the school in question will be considered as part of the Schools Deep Energy Retrofit Programme, as all schools built prior to 2008 will be eligible under the national programme of works within the National Development Plan commencing from 2023 to have an energy retrofit carried out with a view to increasing comfort levels and reducing CO2 emissions and energy bills.
973. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Education if a school (details supplied) has excess lands that could be used by local supports clubs on a year to year basis. [39796/21]
View answerRegarding lands at the school referred to, any proposals for their use requires consideration by my Department in the context of current and future requirements for education provision for the school and the area. Any proposal submitted through the school should clearly demonstrate how the future expansion of the school could be provided for if the proposed arrangement went ahead.
