Written Answers Nos. 296-312
296. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education if further progress has been made in securing a school place for the son of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24485/23]
View answerI can assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs is an absolute priority for my Department.
In order to plan for school place needs, my Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and utilises a Geographical Information System to anticipate school place demand. Information from a range of sources, including Child Benefit data, school enrolment data and information on residential development activity is used for this purpose. Additionally, Project Ireland 2040 population and housing targets inform my Department's projections of school place requirements.
While my Department is aware of enrolment pressures and demand for additional school places in Kilcock, it is important to note that where enrolment pressures arise, it may not be as a result of lack of accommodation but may be driven by the following factors:
• Duplication of applications – pupils have applied for a place to a number of schools in the area
• School of choice – pupils can’t get a place in their preferred school while there are places in other schools in the town/area
• Some towns/areas have single sex schools and while places are available in the school they are not available to all pupils
• External draw – pupils coming from outside the local area
My Department's main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in the area. In relation to school admissions, it is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998.
Parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available the pupil should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available a selection process may be necessary. This 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. However, this may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.
Through close engagement with school patrons and authorities, my Department has established a requirement for additional school places in Kilcock. Engagement is ongoing with schools and patrons with a view to making increased provision where necessary.
297. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh den Aire Oideachais cad é an meastachán ar chostais a bhainfeadh leis an Deontas Caipitíochta do na Colaistí Samhraidh Gaeltachta a thabhairt ar ais, bunaithe ar an ráta a bhí ann sular cuireadh ar scoir é, agus ar an ráta a bheadh ann dá gcuirfí an ráta boilscithe ó shin san áireamh, agus é measta go bhfreastalaíonn timpeall 27,000 dalta orthu i rith an tsamhraidh. [24525/23]
View answerBaineann an t-eolas atá á lorg ag an Teachta le deontas nach bhfuil íoctha ag an Roinn Oideachais ó 2008 ar aghaidh agus mar thoradh níl an t-eolas cuí ar fáil go héasca. Seolfar tuilleadh eolais díreach chuig an Teachta chomh luath agus is féidir.
As the information requested by the Deputy relates to a grant which has not been paid by the Department of Education since 2008, the information specified is not readily available. Further information will be sent directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
298. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education if she will publish the KOSI report which her Department funded Donegal Education Centre to commission; the amount the report cost; if the recommendations of this report are now in place; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24536/23]
View answerFollowing the discovery of suspected financial irregularities in Donegal Education Support Centre in 2015 the Management Committee tendered and contracted for an external accountant to carry out an audit investigating the matter. KOSI were the successful tenderers and submitted a final report on this issue in December 2016. This report was commissioned by Donegal Education Support Centre and the findings were submitted to the Centre's Management Committee. This report is not the property of the Department of Education and therefore the Department is not in a position to publish it or comment on the findings. Donegal Education Support Centre have confirmed that the recommendations included in the report are now in place. My Department provided funding towards the total cost of this audit.
With regard to Education Centres generally, my Department is progressing a programme of governance modernisation with the aim of continuously improving the governance and accountability structure in the sector. This programme is being informed by the Mazars’ Review of the Department’s Governance, Funding and Accountability arrangements for Education Support Centres and governance requirements for state funded bodies as outlined in the Code of Practice for State Bodies.
299. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Education to ensure that the criteria of a transport service (details supplied) is amended to enable more children avail of it; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24544/23]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 147,900 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country.
In addition, school transport scheme services are being provided in the current school year for over 3,800 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.
The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.
Children are eligible for transport at primary level where they reside not less than 3.2 kilometres from and are attending their nearest national school, and at post primary level where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest post primary school/education centre as determined by the department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.
Children who are eligible for school transport and who have completed the application process on time will be accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation.
Children who are not eligible for school transport, but who completed the application process on time, will be considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated; such seats are referred to as concessionary seats.
Because of the nature of concessionary transport for non-eligible children and the priority of providing places for eligible children, there may be an excess of demand over supply for concessionary places, in these cases Bus Éireann will allocate tickets for spare seats using an agreed selection process.
Bus Éireann has advised that the service referred to by the Deputy in this case, is a 12 seater service which was sanctioned for Ukrainian pupils and commenced service in December 2022. Bus Éireann have confirmed they received no mainstream applications for this school for the 22/23 school year.
Families are requested to apply and pay/enter medical card details before the closing date on their Bus Éireann family portal account in order to be considered for transport. The closing date for new applications for the 2023/2024 school year was the 28th April 2023.
New applications are considered as:
• Pupils who will be attending junior infants in primary school or first year in post-primary school for the first time in 2023.
• Pupils that may move home address or will be attending a new school in the 2023/24 school year
Applications can be made by visiting www.buseireann.ie/schooltransport
Any new applications made after the closing date are considered late applications and families are not guaranteed a seat. A late application may mean that a ticket is not available.
300. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Education if she will agree to meet the management of a school (details supplied) to discuss their concerns in respect of the proposals for the badly needed new school building; if she will provide an update and give assurances; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24552/23]
View answerMy Department is currently developing the accommodation brief for a new school building for the school referred to by the Deputy which will provide capacity for 1,000 mainstream pupils as well as accommodation for pupils with special education needs on the current school site.
I wish to advise the Deputy that there are standard procedures to be followed in relation to the progression of a major project which involves finalising the project brief, preliminary design, the appointment of a Design Team, detailed design, planning permission and then ultimately proceeding to tender and construction.
I wish to assure the Deputy that this major project is being given due consideration and attention and my Department will be in contact with the school authority in this regard in due course.
301. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Education if she will ensure that a teacher (details required) is registered with the Teaching Council of Ireland without further delay; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24557/23]
View answerUnder the Teaching Council Acts 2001-2015 the Teaching Council is the body with statutory authority and responsibility for the regulation of the teaching profession in Ireland including the registration of teachers in the State.
The Teaching Council registers teachers under the Teaching Council Act 2001-2015 and in line with the Teaching Council Registration Regulations, 2016. As set out in the Schedule of the Regulations, the Council registers teachers under five routes of registration: Route 1 - Primary, Route 2 - Post-primary, Route 3 - Further Education, Route 4 - Other and Route 5 - Student Teacher.
As a professional standards body, the Council operates in accordance with Irish and EU legislation. The Teaching Council adheres to the Teaching Council Act 2001-2015, the Teaching Council Registration Regulations (2016) and in its role as a competent authority, it operates in accordance with the EU Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive (2005/36/EU as amended).
The recognition of a fully qualified teacher’s qualifications is determined in accordance with EU law; EU Directive, 2005/36/EU, regardless of where the qualification was awarded. A person deemed to be a fully qualified teacher has completed a recognised teacher education qualification and a programme of induction in the country in which they qualified.
The person referred to in correspondence qualified as a primary teacher in the United Kingdom in 2008 and did not complete teacher induction in the UK. In March 2023, the person referred to in correspondence applied for the assessment of their qualifications for the purpose of registration. They were advised that they would not be eligible to apply for registration as they did not have evidence of induction from the UK. The correspondent was also advised by the Teaching Council that they are eligible to apply under the Teaching Council (Registration) (Amendment), 2023. The 2023 Amendment allows for teachers who qualified outside of Ireland without induction to apply for registration as an exceptional and time-bound measure, and to complete their induction in Ireland.
The correspondent subsequently applied on 24 April 2023 for registration under the Teaching Council (Registration) (Amendment), 2023. This application is currently being processed in line with published time-frames for same. The Teaching Council has advised that the correspondent has been provided with an update. To note, as published on the Teaching Council website, applications from overseas qualified applicants can take up to 12 weeks (in this case, from 24th April) to conclude following receipt of all required documentation.
302. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Education the estimated additional cost of expanding the Creative Schools programme to every secondary school in the State. [24571/23]
View answer303. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Education the funding spent by her Department on the Creative Schools programme every year since 2017; the breakdown by current and capital spending; and a list of each participating school each year, and the amount received. [24572/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 302 and 303 together.
I propose to take PQs 24571/23 and 24572/23 together.
Creative Schools is a flagship initiative of the Creative Youth Plan, supporting schools to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives. It is one of a number of programmes within Creative Youth, which also includes other flagship creative programmes for schools which are supported and led by my Department, including BLAST and Creative Clusters.
Since 2018, Creative Schools has supported schools over two years to develop and implement a bespoke Creative Schools plan. It is led by the Arts Council in partnership with my Department and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. Access to the initiative is open to all Department of Education-recognised primary and post-primary schools (currently 3,958 according to published figures www.gov.ie/en/collection/63363b-data-on-individual-schools/), in addition to Youthreach centres (www.etbi.ie/youthreach/youthreach-directory-contacts/).
Each school participating in the initiative is provided with a Creative Schools operating grant of €4,000 in total over the two years. Each school is also provided with access to a trained Creative Associate, a school coordinator and voice of the child training. In 2020 the Arts Council was awarded additional funding from the July Stimulus Package announced by Government, designed to directly support those negatively impacted by Covid-19. The Arts Council agreed to award additional funding to all participating schools of €1,100.
For the 2022 intake, four schools joined the programme that are based in non-mainstream settings, attached to Special Care Units or Children Detention Centres. Given the particular needs of these settings and the young people within them, they were offered an enhanced package of supports to include greater allocated time with a Creative Associate and an increased grant of €8,000 each over the two years.
In the five rounds from 2018 to 2022, a total number of 1,433 schools and Youthreach Centres have applied to participate in Creative Schools. Over 830 schools and Youthreach centres have been invited to participate during this time, details of which are available by year on the Arts Council website here: www.artscouncil.ie/generic_content.aspx?id=59340
The following table outlines the breakdown of funding spent by my Department on the Creative Schools programme since 2018:
|
Year |
Amount |
|
2018 |
€289,491 |
|
2019 |
€764,485 |
|
2020 |
€837,300 |
|
2021 |
€798,200 |
|
2022 |
€803,725 |
Creative Schools is available to all schools, including primary. Any further scaling up would require a re-consideration of the most feasible model of delivery.
304. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Education if she will address the insufficient allocation of English as an Additional Language support hours for a school (details supplied) to teach and integrate diverse children into a small rural school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24594/23]
View answer308. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Education if she will consider changing the principal at a school (details supplied) from teaching to administrative, or an additional classroom teaching post within the school to align the classrooms across the four curricular planning bands for increase enrolment of children with additional needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24598/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 304 and 308 together.
The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the previous 30 September.
The staffing process contains an appeals mechanism for schools to submit a staffing appeal under certain criteria to an independent Primary Staffing Appeals Board. The Appeals Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final. Information on the appeals process and application forms are available in Circular 0006/2023.
My Department provides specific English Language support to schools with pupils newly arrived into the country that have English as an additional language.
The school referred to by the Deputy has an allocation of 20 hours per week based on the number of new entrant pupils enrolled, as set out in the NE-EAL application form.
305. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Education if she will provide a breakdown of the primary and secondary schools in County Mayo that have been sanctioned for additional education supports for English as an Additional Language, taking into account the number of additional children enrolled into mainstream primary and secondary schools under international protection and benefices of temporary protection. [24595/23]
View answerThe Special Education Teaching allocation provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile and also encompasses the Language Support (EAL) allocation that schools were allocated in previous years. All schools are advised in the first instance to review whether the needs of newly enrolled pupils can be met from within existing allocations.
The Department also provides specific English Language support to schools with pupils newly arrived into the country that have English as an additional language.
Schools may apply for further language support through the staffing appeals process. Having considered the circumstances outlined by the school and having regard to the high number of pupils requiring EAL support, additional support may be approved to meet the educational needs of such pupils.
Details of the current level of EAL support provided to schools in Co. Mayo, under the New Entrant allocation process, are attached.
306. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Education if she will provide a breakdown of additional children enrolled into mainstream primary and secondary schools under international protection and beneficiaries of temporary protection; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24596/23]
View answerIn Ireland, all migrant children, including children of international protection applicants, refugees, migrant workers and unaccompanied minors, can access pre-school, first and second-level education in a manner similar to Irish nationals, until they have reached the age of 18 years.
Tusla Education Support service has a dedicated team working in collaboration with the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), to assist in management and co-ordinating of school placements, working in collaboration with the Regional Education and Language Teams (REALT) teams. School enrolment databases do not record whether a child or their parent has sought asylum. Therefore this Department does not hold data on children enrolled in schools who have arrived in Ireland under International Protection.
We do however have data in relation to the number of Ukrainian students enrolled in schools, which is set out by county in the table below, at primary and post-primary level, as of end April 2023.
My Department continues to publish figures on the enrolment of Ukrainian children each month. The latest press release of 3 May 2023 is available here gov.ie - Department of Education confirms 15,458 Ukrainian pupils currently enrolled in Irish schools (www.gov.ie)
The Deputy may also wish to note that the CSO also publishes data on Ukrainian arrivals and enrolments on their database data.cso.ie/# on a weekly basis, and the latest data available there is as of 18 May.
|
County |
Primary |
Post-primary |
|
Carlow |
147 |
76 |
|
Cavan |
239 |
106 |
|
Clare |
596 |
344 |
|
Cork |
1,076 |
530 |
|
Donegal |
833 |
467 |
|
Dublin |
1,204 |
686 |
|
Galway |
623 |
323 |
|
Kerry |
1,026 |
559 |
|
Kildare |
158 |
95 |
|
Kilkenny |
166 |
120 |
|
Laois |
135 |
88 |
|
Leitrim |
218 |
133 |
|
Limerick |
329 |
205 |
|
Longford |
67 |
55 |
|
Louth |
267 |
175 |
|
Mayo |
509 |
280 |
|
Meath |
292 |
130 |
|
Monaghan |
70 |
32 |
|
Offaly |
121 |
43 |
|
Roscommon |
166 |
62 |
|
Sligo |
231 |
157 |
|
Tipperary |
220 |
140 |
|
Waterford |
274 |
159 |
|
Westmeath |
207 |
95 |
|
Wexford |
515 |
238 |
|
Wicklow |
298 |
173 |
|
Total |
9,987 |
5,471 |
307. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Education if she will consider significantly increasing the hours for the secretarial post/grant for a school (details supplied) whose workload has significantly increased beyond part-time hours; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24597/23]
View answerFunding to cater for ancillary services is made available by my Department under two separate schemes. One is the 1978/79 scheme under which school secretaries and caretakers are paid directly through the payroll operated by my Department. This scheme is being phased out as posts become vacant and no new posts are being created.
The second is the capitation grant scheme towards the funding of ancillary services in schools. Within the grant programme, the level and extent of secretarial and caretaking services provided is a matter for the school authorities who, through the discretion afforded by the scheme, apply their own arrangements for secretarial and caretaking services as resources permit.
The current standard rate of Ancillary Grant is €173.00 per pupil. The amount paid to an individual school is determined by the school’s enrolment.
Further information is available on my Departments website in Circular 0017/2021 Revision of Grant Rates in 2021 for Boards of Management of Recognised Primary Schools or by ETBs in Community National Schools using Ancillary Services Grant funding
Following a series of engagements at the WRC, a suite of measures designed to improve the working conditions of school secretaries was proposed and accepted following a ballot carried out by the Fórsa trade union representing school secretaries. Work to implement this agreement has now commenced. Included in this are the arrangements for the future allocation of secretarial support for schools following the transfer of Secretaries to the Department’s payroll.
309. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Education when primary and post-primary schools will receive their ICT grants; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24718/23]
View answerThe Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 was published in April 2022 and builds on the achievements of the previous Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020. It aims to further support the school system so that all students across our schools have the opportunity to gain the knowledge and the skills they need to navigate an ever-evolving digital world successfully. The strategy was developed following an extensive consultation process with all relevant stakeholders including students, parents/guardians, teachers and industry and sets out the various supports and resources available to schools in this important area.
As with funding under the previous strategy, the funding under the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 issued directly to schools as they are best placed to identify the requirements of their own student cohort and to meet those requirements in the most appropriate way in accordance with their digital learning plan. Communication will issue to schools shortly in respect of ICT grants.
310. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education when funding can be provided for a project (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24728/23]
View answerI wish to confirm that my Department received an application for capital funding for a new sports hall from the school referred to by the Deputy.
The main focus of resources over the last decade and for the coming period is on provision of additional capacity to cater for increasing demographics at primary and post-primary level and for Special Education needs provision. The immediate priority for the Department is to provide new and replacement school places each year, to ensure that every child has a school place.
The provision of GP rooms and PE Halls, at primary and post primary level respectively, and outdoor hard play areas, form part of the accommodation brief for all new school buildings. This is also the case where a major building or refurbishment project is being delivered for an existing school.
Under Project Ireland 2040 the education sector will receive a total of approximately €4.4 billion capital investment over the period 2021-2025. There will be a rolling 5 year funding envelope which will be updated annually for the period 2026 to 2030 within the Government’s overall NDP funding envelope of €136 billion in exchequer capital (€165 billion total capital including non-Exchequer) that will facilitate building a modern and sustainable school infrastructure.
This significant investment allows us to move forward with certainty on our ambitious plans and deliver high quality building projects, with a real focus on sustainability, for school communities across Ireland. The strengthened focus on refurbishment of existing school stock will have different strands and will include a PE build and modernisation programme which will enable students in post-primary schools to have access to appropriate facilities to support PE provision, particularly also in the context of the roll-out of PE as a leaving-certificate subject.
The application has been assessed and a decision has issued to the school authority directly.
311. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education if she will make changes to the school bus route servicing an area (details supplied) [24750/23]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% tickets issued to eligible students and 38% tickets issued on a concessionary basis in the current 2022/23 school year compared to the 2021/22 school year.
In addition, school transport scheme services are being provided in the current school year for over 5,200 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.
The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.
The issues raised by the Deputy have been reviewed recently by Bus Éireann. The Local Area Inspector has reviewed the existing pickup point and has deemed this pickup point as safe.
There is an onus of responsibility on parents/guardians to arrange to bring their children to and from the pickup point of a school bus service, taking whatever safety precautions they consider sufficient in doing so, and accompanying the children to ensure their safety.
312. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Education if she will alter the designated secondary school for an area (details supplied) with regard to school bus tickets. [24751/23]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% tickets issued to eligible students and 38% tickets issued on a concessionary basis in the current 2022/23 school year compared to the 2021/22 school year.
In addition, school transport scheme services are being provided in the current school year for over 5,200 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.
The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.
Children are eligible for transport at post primary level where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their post primary school/education centre as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.
Children who are not eligible for school transport, but who completed the application process on time, will be considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated; such seats are referred to as concessionary seats.
Bus Éireann has advised that pupils residing in the area referred to by the Deputy are not attending their closest post primary centre and as such deemed mainstream concessionary pupils to their school of attendance.
Because of the nature of concessionary transport for non-eligible children and the priority of providing places for eligible children, there may be an excess of demand over supply for concessionary places, in these cases Bus Éireann will allocate tickets for spare seats using an agreed selection process.
Parents of a child wishing to avail of school transport services are required to apply on-line on Bus Éireann website at www.buseireann.ie
For 2023/24 school year, the closing date for new applications was Friday 28 April 2023. Any new applications made after the closing date are considered late applications and families are not guaranteed a seat. The Bus Éireann family portal will be open to accept payments/medical card details from the 3 April 2023 until 9 June 2023. Payment made after the deadline date are late applications and a ticket may not be available to families at that stage.
