Jonathan O'Brien
Ceist:896. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the cost of reversing the 15% cuts to resource hours in schools. [20581/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraSpecial Educational Needs Expenditure
Ceisteanna (896)
Freagraí scríofa
I wish to advise the Deputy that on 21st May, 2015, I announced that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) will increase its allocation of Resource Teacher Posts to schools by over 9% for the start of the coming school year.
The NCSE will allocate 6,454 resource teacher posts to schools for September 2015, which is an increase of 554 posts -or 9.4% - since September 2014.
Even in the constrained economic circumstances we have faced in recent years, we have been able to continue to meet the needs of children with special educational needs attending our schools.
This year we have again increased the number of Resource Teachers which will be allocated to schools, keeping pace with both demographic growth and increased demand.
The NCSE has now published details of the allocations which will be made to each individual school on the NCSE website ncse.ie. The NCSE will also have a second round allocation process to respond to late enrolments, or from diagnosed disabilities emerging after the closing date for the first allocation round, to the start of the new school year.
On publishing details of the allocations for September 2015, the NCSE noted that the number of resource teaching posts which are being allocated to schools has increased by 22% since September 2013, from 5285 posts at that point to 6,454 posts for September 2015.
It is therefore clear that not only has there not been a reduction in the overall number of resource teaching posts and hours being allocated to schools, but that there has been a very significant increase in the overall allocation to schools in recent years.
The cost of adding an additional 15% to the existing allocation, which in itself represents an increase of 22% in the allocation in recent years, would be approximately an additional €71m per year.
Special Educational Needs Service Provision
Ceisteanna (897)
Charlie McConalogue
Ceist:897. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills when her Department will sanction the low incidence hours for children with Down's syndrome to schools; if schools entitled to these hours will be granted 100% of the low incidence hours, or the reduced allocation rate of 85% of allocated hours; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20584/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The Deputy will be aware that I recently announced that additional resources will be allocated to schools, as an interim measure, to support those children with Down syndrome, who are not already supported through the (NCSE) low incidence resource teaching annual allocation process.
All children with Down syndrome had previously been entitled to receive additional teaching support either through the General Allocation systems, if the child had mild general learning difficulties, or if they had an additional low incidence disability, as set out in my Departments Circular 02/05, through an additional allocation to schools by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE).
I advised that this measure was being introduced in recognition of the length of time it will take to introduce the new resource teacher allocation model and the fact that children with Down syndrome experience a cluster of difficulties relating to this syndrome, in addition to general learning difficulties, including speech and language developmental delays.
Under the interim measure, schools will receive 2.5 resource teacher hours per week for each qualifying child.
This new allocation means there will now be certainty regarding the provision which will be made for children with Down syndrome with a Mild General Learning Difficulty.
However, this new allocation does not constitute a new category of Low Incidence resource teaching hours. Rather it is a specific allocation which will assist schools to support pupils with Down syndrome who do not currently qualify for Low Incidence resource teaching hours, pending the introduction of the new allocation model.
The National Council for Special Education's (NCSE) has advised that 165 valid applications have been received from schools to date, in respect of children with Down syndrome, not already supported through the NCSE annual allocation process. The allocation process for the 2015/16 school year has not concluded and additional applications may also be received under any second round application process.
Special Educational Needs Service Provision
Ceisteanna (898)
Mary Mitchell O'Connor
Ceist:898. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for Education and Skills when the directive for the allocation of resource hours 2015 to 2016 is being issued to special educational needs organisers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20592/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I wish to advise the Deputy that on 21st May, 2015, I announced that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) will increase its allocation of Resource Teacher Posts to schools by over 9% for the start of the coming school year. The NCSE will allocate 6,454 resource teacher posts to schools for September 2015, which is an increase of 554 posts - or 9.4% since September 2014. Even in the constrained economic circumstances we have faced in recent years, we have been able to continue to meet the needs of children with special educational needs attending our schools. This year we have again increased the number of Resource Teachers which will be allocated to schools, keeping pace with both demographic growth and increased demand. The NCSE has now published details of the allocations which will be made to each individual school on the NCSE website ncse.ie. The NCSE will also have a second round allocation process to respond to late enrolments, or from diagnosed disabilities emerging after the closing date for the first allocation round, to the start of the new school year.
School Funding
Ceisteanna (899)
Jonathan O'Brien
Ceist:899. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the funding streams available to primary and post-primary schools to support the teaching of music within schools, including the purchase of instruments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20602/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
It would be normal for a school to fund its music education from its general allocation. However, if a school is setting up a music department for the first time to include music within its programme, then that school can apply to the Department for a grant to assist it with such an introduction.
Many teachers use information and communication technologies to access resources which support teaching and learning in Music. To this end, the interactive white board (for which funding was provided) is useful for example to play excerpts of music in different genres, to explore the sounds and features of musical instruments, and to display information relating to composers/bands/orchestra/various performers. Many schools make good use of the interactive white board to build a repository of resources over time which can be shared as appropriate throughout the school.
Schools Building Projects Status
Ceisteanna (900)
Tony McLoughlin
Ceist:900. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of fixed new school units constructed in both County Leitrim and County Sligo during the period from 2007 until 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20604/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
A total of 5 new schools were constructed in County Leitrim and County Sligo during the period 2007 to 2014. No new school has been completed to date in 2015.
School Staff
Ceisteanna (901, 902)
Michael McCarthy
Ceist:901. Deputy Michael McCarthy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the loss of a teacher, from September 2015, in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20609/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraMichael McCarthy
Ceist:902. Deputy Michael McCarthy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will retain the current teaching complement at a school (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20610/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I propose to take Questions Nos. 901 and 902 together.
The criteria used for the allocation of teachers to schools is published annually on the Department's website. 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 arrangements for the coming school year 2015/16 are set out in Circular 0005/2015 which is available on the website.
A staffing appeals process is available to schools under certain criteria. Details of the appeals criteria are set out in Circular 0005/2015. The final meeting of the Primary Staffing Appeals Board for 2015/16 will take place in October, 2015.
The Primary Staffing Appeals Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.
School Staff
Ceisteanna (903)
Charlie McConalogue
Ceist:903. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a school (details supplied) in County Donegal can be released from a cluster; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20615/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts to primary schools is published annually on the Department website. The staffing arrangements for the coming school year 2015/16 are set out in Circular 0005/2015 which is available on the website.
My Department introduced reforms to the teacher allocation process for resource hours in recent years which included the allocation of a network of permanent posts in base schools to cater for NCSE approved resource hours for individual pupils in schools. This network of base posts is designed to make the system work more smoothly at school level. 83% of all NCSE approved resource teaching hours in the 2014/15 school year were allocated to schools that had permanent resource base posts. There will be no changes to the location of permanent resource base posts for the 2015/16 school year.
Schools with a resource base post are required to co-operate with their neighbouring schools to ensure that any surplus capacity in the (25 hour) resource post(s) is made available to neighbouring schools to meet their NCSE approved resource hour requirements.
Schools that do not have a resource base post are required to check for available surplus capacity in base posts in neighbouring schools before making an application to the Department's Primary Teacher Allocations Section.
Where a school that does not have a base post has been approved for 25 or more NCSE approved hours, a temporary post will be sanctioned for the 2015/16 school year.
Where a school has less than 25 hours that cannot be met from other schools, sanction will be given for part time hours.
When the allocations and redeployment process for surplus permanent/CID holding teachers is completed later in the summer, schools that have complied with the published staffing arrangements will be given some discretion to operate, where possible, their own temporary local arrangements in relation to the day to day work arrangements of teachers in full-time shared posts. These arrangements are aimed at minimising any time lost in travelling between schools.
School Accommodation Provision
Ceisteanna (904)
Tony McLoughlin
Ceist:904. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of prefabricated school building units that were funded for construction by her Department in both County Sligo and County Leitrim during the period between 2007 and 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20632/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
As the Deputy may be aware since July 2008, it is my Department's policy to offer schools being approved for devolved grant aid for additional accommodation the option to use their capital grant aid to build a permanent classroom(s) rather than purchase a prefab.
Since then 66 primary and post-primary schools in Counties Leitrim and Sligo received funding to provide 108 additional classroom/resource/specialists rooms of which 13 were purchased prefabs.
School Enrolments
Ceisteanna (905)
Charlie McConalogue
Ceist:905. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will ensure that when a secondary school in County Kildare changes its enrolment policy, a percentage of places will be reserved for primary schools whose pupils traditionally attended that school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20672/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
It is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. The enrolment policy must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants.
This 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. Parents can 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. In this regard a Board of Management may find it necessary to restrict enrolment to children from a particular area or a particular age group or on the basis of some other criterion. 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.
Section 29 of the Education Act, 1998 provides for an appeal by a parent or guardian to the Secretary General of my Department, or in the case of an Educational Training Board (ETB) school to the ETB in the first instance, where a Board of Management of a school, or a person acting on behalf of the Board, refuses to enrol a student in a school, expels a student or suspends a student for 20 or more days in any school year.
The Educational Welfare Service of the Child and Family Agency (EWS) is the statutory agency which can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. The EWS can be contacted at 01-8738700.
I recently published the Education (Admission to Schools) Bill. The Bill is on the Government's legislative programme for enactment in this session.
The Bill provides an over-arching framework to ensure that how schools decide on who is enrolled and who is refused a place in schools is more structured, fair and transparent.
School Patronage
Ceisteanna (906)
Stephen Donnelly
Ceist:906. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a decision has been made on the patronage of the recently announced school (details supplied) in County Wicklow; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20721/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The assessment of applications received for patronage of the new primary school to which the Deputy refers is being finalised. It is expected that a report will be ready shortly for consideration by the New Schools Establishment Group, who will in turn make recommendations to me for consideration and final decision.
Schools Refurbishment
Ceisteanna (907)
Charlie McConalogue
Ceist:907. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills when a decision will be made on an application for emergency works submitted from a school (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20725/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application for funding under my Department's Emergency Works Scheme for universal access works at the school. My Department's Planning and Building Unit has sought further information from the school authority and this information is currently awaited. As soon as the information is received and assessed the school authority will be notified of the outcome.
Special Educational Needs Service Provision
Ceisteanna (908)
Michael Healy-Rae
Ceist:908. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of a special needs assistant in a school (details supplied) in County Kerry, as there is speculation that this service may be removed, even though the special needs assistant is providing an excellent service that is much needed and required in this school and the pupils are advancing and benefitting greatly from this; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20798/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
I wish to advise the Deputy that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) for allocating a quantum of Special Needs Assistant (SNA) support for each school annually taking into account the assessed care needs of children qualifying for SNA support enrolled in the school. Where children have significant care needs whereby they may need additional support to be able to attend school, the NCSE may make an allocation of SNA support to the school to assist that child.
The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support. The criteria by which SNA support is allocated to pupils is set out in my Department's Circular 0030/2014, which is available on my Department's website at www.education.ie.
Circular 30/2014 sets out clearly the circumstances in which SNA support is allocated to schools, which is to support the assessed care needs of pupils with special educational needs. It also distinguishes between the role of the class teacher and resource teachers whose role is to teach the child, and the role of an SNA which to provide for the care needs of a child.
All schools have been asked to apply to the NCSE for SNA support for the 2015/16 school year by 18th March, 2015.
The NCSE will consider all applications for SNA support which have been made by schools.
All schools, including the school referred to by the Deputy, will be advised of their SNA allocations for the 2015/16 school year, noting the children who qualify for SNA support, prior to the end of the current school year.
All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO. Parents may also contact their local SENO directly to discuss their child's special educational needs, using the contact details available on www.ncse.ie.
Departmental Staff Training
Ceisteanna (909)
Terence Flanagan
Ceist:909. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the training and education that is provided to school inspectors; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20804/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
On appointment, inspectors participate in a comprehensive and sustained programme of induction during their probationary year. The programme addresses the theoretical basis underpinning inspection, evaluation and reporting, the processes and procedures adopted in implementing current models of inspection, and the policy position of the Department of Education and Skills relating to the work of schools and to the curriculum. Work shadowing with experienced inspectors provides opportunities to observe models of inspection in practice. Other elements of the induction programme include upskilling in the provision of feedback, of data collection and analysis, and of reporting orally and in written format in English and Irish, as appropriate to the language medium through which the inspector will work. The programme seeks to build on inductees' own professional background and experience, and to develop the knowledge, skills and competences required to fulfil the role of the inspector. All inspectors participate in a programme of continuing professional development in line with the individual inspector's needs and the business needs of the Inspectorate. The programme aims to support inspectors in developing their knowledge, skills and competences in the areas of inspection, evaluation and reporting through reflection and consideration of research and best practice.
School Patronage
Ceisteanna (910)
Finian McGrath
Ceist:910. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills her views on a matter (details supplied) regarding national schools' deeds of variation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20807/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The majority of school buildings in the state are in private ownership and under denominational patronage. When state monies were provided to facilitate building works to school property owned by a third party, a legal mechanism had to be put in place in order to protect the State's interest. This was known as a Charging Lease or Declaration of Trust. These leases protect the Minister's capital investment in the school property and require that the property be used as a school for a set period.
As a result of negotiations in the late 1990's on the reconstitution of Boards of Management, an agreement was reached whereby patrons agreed to cede representatives on the Boards of Management in lieu of the Department agreeing to insert a Deed of Variation into the existing property lease. The objective of this Deed of Variation is to provide security for the denominational ethos of a school in cases where a patron or trustee owns the property. Discussions have taken place with the relevant patron bodies over the years to obtain a mutually acceptable solution which meets this objective and these discussions are ongoing.
The Deed of Variation refers to a change in the terms of a charging lease or Declaration of Trust. With regard to admission policies, irrespective of property or Charging Lease arrangements, it is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. The enrolment policy must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants.
Existing equality legislation, which outlaws discrimination in relation to the admission of a student, makes provision for exemptions to apply in the case of schools where the objective is to provide education in an environment that promotes certain religious values.
The Equality legislation provides that any primary or post primary school whose objective is to provide education in an environment that promotes certain religious values may admit a student of a particular religious denomination in preference to other students. The legislation also provides that such a school can refuse to admit a student who is not of that religion only where the school proves that this refusal is essential to maintain the ethos of the school.
The objective of the recently published Education (Admission to Schools) Bill is to provide an over-arching framework to ensure that how schools decide on who is enrolled and who is refused a place in schools is more structured, fair and transparent.
The Bill does not propose changes to the existing equality legislation. However, the Bill provides for schools to explicitly state in the school's admission policy that it will not discriminate against an applicant for admission on the grounds of disability, special educational needs, sexual orientation, family status, membership of the traveller community, race, civil status, gender or religion.
The Bill provides for schools to publish an enrolment policy which will include details of the school's arrangements for students who do not want to attend religious instruction.
Home Tuition Scheme
Ceisteanna (911)
Finian McGrath
Ceist:911. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 188 of 14 May 2015 regarding a home tuition scheme, the reason her Department did not offer a similar arrangement to the parents whose children attended the service provider Achieve ABA, a charity established by parents who in April 2011 submitted a proposal to her Department, wherein section 9 of that proposal, Achieve ABA requested that the home tuition grant be paid directly to them; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20824/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí scríofa
The proposal referred to by the Deputy was submitted to my Department to fund an Academy for Children with Autism for children aged 4 – 14 as an alternative to State funded placements in State funded schools. A decision was taken not to provide the funding to support the proposal as it was not in line with departmental policy on educational provision for children with autism and the applicants were advised accordingly. The applicants were informed of this decision in writing in June 2011.
A section of the rejected submission related to pre-school services and suggested that the Academy would rely on home tuition funding to fund this element of provision if three significant changes could be made to the scheme.
The Deputy is aware the Home Tuition scheme is intended to provide support for children for whom State funded school placements are not available, as an interim measure pending placement. My officials could not consider favourably, as proposed by the applicants, removing this core eligibility criterion by providing Home Tuition funding for children who were ineligible for Home Tuition under the terms of the scheme. Similarly, my officials could not agree to a proposal to guarantee continued funding for such children until the age of 6.
Having rejected the application on these grounds, the third change, which related to direct payment arrangements to the applicants to support the proposed venture did not arise.