Tuesday, 9 Jun 2015

Written Answers Nos. 919-935

Special Educational Needs Service Provision

Ceisteanna (919)

Charlie McConalogue

Ceist:

919. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to the fact that her Department discriminates against girls who attend an all girls primary school, in view of the fact that an all girls primary school receives four hours learning support per mainstream teacher, and an all boys primary school and mixed primary schools receive five hours learning support per mainstream teacher; her views that this is fair and just in view of the fact that there is no directive in a mixed school to ensure that a higher proportion of learning support must be provided to boys, in view of the fact that the rationale for the different levels of learning support provided by the Department of Education and Skills is that boys exhibit a higher incidence of learning difficulties than girls; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21573/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

I wish to advise the Deputy that differing teacher allocation ratios are applied under the General Allocation Model (GAM) in relation to boys, girls and mixed schools in order to account for differentials of prevalence of learning difficulty between boys and girls. The objective of this differentiation is to ensure that resources provided to schools to support children who have additional learning needs are targeted to ensure that those children most in need benefit from these resources.

The rationale for the differing ratios is based on international literature on the incidence of disability as well as international and national surveys of literacy and numeracy which indicate that there is a greater incidence of disability/learning difficulty in boys than girls.

The NCSE has published a report 'A study of the Prevalence of Special Educational Needs' which is available at www.ncse.ie and which contains details regarding the prevalence of special needs among the pupil population including noting gender differentials.

The recently published NCSE Report Delivery for Students with Special Educational Needs, which is also available at www.ncse.ie, recommended that a new resource teaching allocation model be devised for schools taking into account the profiled need of schools and the educational profile of a school.

In doing so, the NCSE report recommended that gender should continue to be a factor in deciding on school profile for resource allocation purposes.

Through consultations, there was a broad welcome for the proposed new model from Parents, disability groups, schools and stakeholders. However, there has not been sufficient time to address all of the concerns which have been raised in advance of the 2015 school year.

My Department is, however, continuing to develop the new allocation model for schools and is currently working to devise a pilot of the new model. In developing the new allocation model for schools, my Department will take account of the recommendations of the NCSE policy advice in relation to the inclusion of gender in deciding on school profiles for resource allocation purposes.

Bus Éireann

Ceisteanna (920)

Brendan Griffin

Ceist:

920. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Education and Skills in view of the fact that Bus Éireann is the organisation responsible for keeping safety records on school transport, and with regard to the fact that 33% of the vehicles in school transport, whether operated by Bus Éireann or their sub contractors, fail spot checks for safety carried out by the internationally recognised experts in the field of vehicle maintenance systems and safety standards, if she will provide, in tabular form, the number of deaths, hospitalisations and reported injuries-accidents that can be attributed to the school transport scheme for each year since 2004; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21616/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills

Bus Éireann has advised that the vast majority of vehicles that were temporarily suspended from use following spot checks arranged by the Company, were suspended until any minor defects detected during the inspections - i.e. those having no significant or immediate effect on the safety of the vehicle, or other road users - were rectified, before being permitted back into service. These type of defects can occur on any kind of road vehicle in normal day to day operations. These random and targeted tests – which are extra safety tests carried out by Bus Éireann - are similar in nature to the NCT tests carried out on private vehicles, where the vehicles are often recalled to address minor defects.

The inspections are an essential part of Bus Éireann's strong safety protocols, which collectively have served to deliver an incident rate of well below one incident per million journeys undertaken on Bus Éireann school buses in recent years.

On the completely separate issue in relation to statistics around incidents and accidents on school transport vehicles these are the figures. Since 2004 there have been seven fatalities on, or within a school bus; including the five students who died in the tragic Kentstown accident, a school bus driver, and a motorcyclist who collided with a school bus. Some 300 injuries were reported in this 11 year period, during which schoolchildren holding tickets issued by Bus Éireann under the School Transport Scheme made almost half a billion individual journeys (471,560,000).

Many of the injuries were relatively minor, and details of related hospitalisations are not known.

As requested by the Deputy, the details for each of the relevant years are attached in tabular form.

Year	Reported Injuries Arising from Accident on or with a School Bus	Fatalities	No. of School Journeys (Millions)	Nature of Fatalities
2004	15	0	42.402
2005	67	5	43.596	5 Pupils in the tragic Kentstown accident
2006	26	0	42.367
2007	20	1	45.507	School Bus Driver fatally injured when load came away from truck and struck front of bus
2008	35	1	45.709	Motorcyclist collided with rear of bus resulting in fatal injuries to rider
2009	37	0	42.388
2010	30	0	42.327
2011	14	0	41.814
2012	13	0	40.398
2013	24	0	41.116
2014	11	0	43.940
2015	7	0

Road Safety

Ceisteanna (921)

Brendan Griffin

Ceist:

921. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will confirm that her staff have made known to her the existence of a report that remains in draft form, that was commissioned in 2005-2006, to investigate, among other things, safety within school transport; if she has read the associated documentation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21617/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills

I understand that the report referred to by the Deputy relates to the Kentstown accident in 2005.

This report was not formally published for a number of different reasons.

The content of the report was superseded by other investigations into the 2005 incident - including those of An Garda Síochána and the Health & Safety Authority (HSA) - and all of the information considered by the investigating committee who compiled the report, was made available to the Gardaí and the HSA.

One of Bus Éireann's primary concerns at all times in the drafting of the report, was sensitivity towards the families' grief and loss, and ensuring that this was not compounded any further.

The report therefore remained in draft form and was rendered obsolete by the outcomes of two investigations, court proceedings and the safety standards and recommendations that have since been implemented within the school transport system.

Education and Training Boards

Ceisteanna (922)

Dominic Hannigan

Ceist:

922. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to reinstate the training allowance for persons who are engaged on community-based training programmes, to ensure that these allowances are available to everyone, regardless of their financial situation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22221/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

Training allowances are aligned to participants' social welfare entitlement and so take account of means and other factors.

An additional training allowance used to be paid for long term unemployed people. This was introduced during a period of high employment levels as an incentive for the long term unemployed to participate in FÁS (now Education and Training Board) training courses including community based training programmes. The payment was reduced as part of Budget 2011 and as part of Budget 2014 it was decided to cease this payment for all participants commencing courses after 1st January 2014. This took account of the very different employment situation compared to when the bonus was introduced. Travel supports continue to be available to these Education and Training Board participants where appropriate. It was a decision taken in the context of the overall savings this Department had to find for 2014 and future years. It was taken against a difficult budgetary background and there is no scope to re-visit it.

Schools Building Projects Status

Ceisteanna (923)

Paul Murphy

Ceist:

923. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills her plans on building and opening a secondary school in an area (details supplied) in County Dublin; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21232/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

A new 1,000 pupil post-primary school is scheduled to open in 2016 in the area referred to by the Deputy.

Patronage of this school was awarded to Dublin and Dun Laoghaire Education & Training Board and it will be a multi-denominational, co-educational non-designated community college.

The Design Team on the project for the school, has recently completed stage 2(a) and has been authorised to progress to Stage 2(b), which includes the application for planning permission and other statutory approvals and the preparation of tender documents. Following the completion of stage 2(b) the project will then be authorised to proceed to tender and construction stages.

The project is included in my Department's five year building programme to proceed to Tender and Construction in 2015/16. The intended start-date for the school's first intake of pupils is the commencement of the school year 2016/17.

Special Educational Needs Service Provision

Ceisteanna (924)

Brendan Ryan

Ceist:

924. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of places currently in Autism Spectrum Disorder classes in Dublin North, by school; the number of places due to come on stream in the next two years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21260/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

The Deputy will be aware that the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), is responsible for processing applications from primary and post primary schools for special educational needs supports, including the establishment of special classes in various geographical areas as required. The NCSE operates within my Department's criteria in allocating such support.

SENOs engage with schools annually in order to plan for, and to open, new special classes each year, in order to ensure there are sufficient special class placements available at primary and post primary school level to meet demand in a given area.

All schools have the names and contact details of their local SENO. Parents are encouraged to liaise with the local SENO to discuss placement options for their child.

The NCSE will continue to monitor and review the requirement for special class places in particular areas and has capacity to open such new special classes where necessary.

Details of all of the special classes for children with special educational needs which are attached to mainstream schools are published each year on the NCSE website at www.ncse.ie.

I have arranged for the Deputy's request for specific detail on provision in the area referred to, to be forwarded to the NCSE for their attention and direct reply.

Schools Building Projects Status

Ceisteanna (925)

Noel Coonan

Ceist:

925. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding recent correspondence in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21269/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

I can confirm that the school to which the Deputy refers submitted a major application for a new school building in November 2013. The current status of all applications, including for the school in question, may be viewed on my Department's website at www.education.ie.

To facilitate the provision of a new school building for the Gaelscoil in question a greenfield site will be required. In that regard, officials in my Department are currently working with officials from Tipperary County Council under the Memorandum of Understanding in relation to the identification and acquisition of a suitable permanent site for the school concerned.

My Department has contacted the Gaelscoil in question in relation to accommodation concerns, that it recently raised, and is continuing to liaise with the school in that regard.

Schools Building Projects Status

Ceisteanna (926, 978)

Noel Coonan

Ceist:

926. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary that has applied for an extension; the timeframe for completion of works; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21275/15]

Noel Coonan

Ceist:

978. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding an application for an extension in respect of a school (details supplied) in County Tipperary; the timeframe for completion of the works; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21984/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

I propose to take questions 926 and 978 together.

The project referred to by the Deputies is nearing completion of the Design Team appointment stage. The Tender competition for the Design Team appointment has concluded and the Board of Management have finalised the assessment of the tenders received. Letters of Intent and feedback letters have recently issued to all Tenderers and subject to no issues arising the formal appointment of the Design Team should be completed shortly. Upon completion of Design Team appointment, my Department will be in direct contact with the Board of Management regarding the progression of the project through architectural planning.

The project will provide for refurbishment of the listed building on site and an extension to provide overall accommodation for a 16 classroom school. My Department has already secured planning permission for the project using in-house Architectural resources. Once appointed the design team will work on the basis established under that planning permission to bring this project through the remaining stages of the architectural planning process.

Educational Projects

Ceisteanna (927)

Eric J. Byrne

Ceist:

927. Deputy Eric Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills her views on correspondence (details supplied) regarding the withdrawal of funding from the post-primary European Studies Programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21281/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

The European Studies Programme has been funded on a 50:50 basis by the Department of Education, Northern Ireland and by my Department. Some €3.3 million have been contributed by the Irish Exchequer to the programme since 1999. In recent years, my Department's contributions to this programme have averaged €200,000 per annum from the budget made available to support North-South Cooperation activities.

The decision to dismantle the structure for the administration of the programme, which has been carried out by a team based at the former Southern Education and Library Board, Armagh, was one taken by the Department of Education in Northern Ireland. I understand this decision was taken arising from education budget reductions in the North, and the results of an independent evaluation of the programme by the University of Hull which found that the North/South dimension was not a major focus of the programme. I further understand that there are no plans to change this position.

Teaching Council of Ireland

Ceisteanna (928)

Fergus O'Dowd

Ceist:

928. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a person (details supplied) in County Offaly will be credited with the time from when that person's application to the Teaching Council was received; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21282/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

As the Deputy will be aware, since 2006, under the Teaching Council Act 2001, the Teaching Council is the regulator and standards body for the teaching profession. Under Circular 31/2011 of my Department, persons who have applied for registration as teachers with the Teaching Council are paid at the unqualified rate of pay pending the decision of the Council.

I note also the reference to the teacher redeployment panel. The position is that the core function of the redeployment arrangements is to facilitate the redeployment of all surplus permanent teachers to other schools that have vacancies. Thereafter, schools are required under the panel arrangements to fill permanent vacancies from supplementary panels comprised of eligible fixed-term (temporary/substitute) and part-time teachers. Arrangements for panel access for fixed-term (temporary), substitute and part-time teachers to the Supplementary Redeployment Panel for the 2015/16 school year are set out in Circular 0072/2014 which is available on my Department's website. Applicants must meet all of the published criteria in order to gain access to the Supplementary Redeployment Panel. The teacher who is the subject of the question failed to meet the criteria and is therefore ineligible to be included on the supplementary redeployment panel.

School Patronage

Ceisteanna (929)

Finian McGrath

Ceist:

929. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will support the proposal for a new Irish Medium Primary School in the Marino, Dublin 3 and Drumcondra, Dublin 9 area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21312/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

In February of this year I announced that a new primary school will be opened in September 2016 to meet a demographic need in the Drumcondra/Marino area of Dublin.

As with all such new schools, my Department will run an open patronage determination process to establish who will operate the new school. This process will take place later this year. It will be open to all patrons and prospective patrons to apply to run the school in question, including those proposing Irish-medium education.

Student Universal Support Ireland Administration

Ceisteanna (930)

Bernard Durkan

Ceist:

930. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will indicate eligibility for a higher education grant in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21322/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage the assistance of their public representatives in making enquiries about their grant applications.

This service complements the established channels provided by SUSI which include online application tracking, a dedicated website, a telephone helpdesk, email and social media, including Facebook and Twitter.

Inquiries may be emailed direct to SUSI at [e-mail]. SUSI are responding to email queries within a matter of days.

Pupil-Teacher Ratio

Ceisteanna (931)

Terence Flanagan

Ceist:

931. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the action that is being taken to reduce primary school class sizes to the European Union average; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21357/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

My focus in Budget 2015 was on obtaining the additional funding that was necessary to provide for demographic growth. The last Budget included an increase in spending on education for the first time in recent years, amounting to additional funding of €60m during 2015.

This funding will be used to provide 1,700 additional teachers and SNAs for our schools, as well as to fund prioritised reforms, such as implementation of the literacy and numeracy strategy, reform of junior cycle, and the introduction of education focussed pre-school inspections. The improvements in the Primary Staffing Schedule for small schools which I announced in February last are the only changes that I will be making to the staffing arrangements for schools for the 2015/16 school year.

The Government's approach to restoring the economy has helped Ireland to return to a position where we are seeing economic growth. It is a continuing improvement in our economic growth over a sustained period that will enable us to move to a point where we can look again at providing for additional teacher resources in schools which could bring about further improvement in PTR, class size and support for classroom teachers.

The challenge for all schools is to ensure that they utilise their allocated resources to best effect to maximise teaching and learning outcomes.

Schools Administration

Ceisteanna (932)

Terence Flanagan

Ceist:

932. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding teaching in primary schools (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21358/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

Principal duties in medium to large sized schools are carried out by administrative principals. Principal duties in small to medium sized schools are carried out by teaching principals.

Circular 25/02 which is available on the Department website outlines the number of days that teaching principals may take as release time in a school year in order to assist them fulfilling their principal duties. Under these arrangements my Department pays for a substitute teacher to be employed by a school to facilitate administrative functions to be undertaken by the teaching principal. Under the current arrangements the number of days that principal teachers may take as release time in each school year ranges between 14 and 22 days depending on the size of the school. The cost of doubling this release time would be of the order of €10m per annum.

I am aware of the workload issue and the pressures on Principals-teachers. My Department has done work in helping to ease the administrative burden on school principals. The development and introduction of the primary online database is a significant step forward in this regard. A further step forward was the publication recently of Department Circular 0033/2015 which updates and simplifies the manner in which primary schools can maintain pupil enrolment and attendance records following the introduction of the primary online database.

Economic constraints and the moratorium on recruitment albeit alleviated to some extent for schools, have presented challenges within the education sector. They also provide an opportunity to review the role of the principal so that our principals are leaders of learning, and to reconfigure the middle management structure to support principals in their role, ensuring ownership of responsibility rather than tasks, thereby building expertise and supporting a career path within the profession.

The Department, in consultation with the representative management bodies has commenced an exploration of the opportunities to support and thereby advance our understanding of the needs of school leaders and how they might be addressed.

School Funding

Ceisteanna (933)

Terence Flanagan

Ceist:

933. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the same funding will be provided to primary schools as to secondary schools (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21359/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

At primary level, funding towards schools' running costs is provided by my Department's scheme of capitation grants.

These grants are intended to contribute towards the general operating costs of primary schools. Minimums and maximums apply to these grants which reflect the estimated minimum running costs of small schools and the economies of scale that may be achieved in larger schools.

Special enhanced capitation rates are paid in respect of children with special needs who attend special schools or special classes dedicated to children with particular special needs. These classes have a lower Pupil Teacher ratio and as such the unit cost per pupil is higher.

It is extremely difficult to make valid comparisons between the levels of grants paid and the actual costs of running schools at primary and post primary levels. However it is accepted that the maintenance costs for second level schools are much greater on a unit cost basis than those in primary schools and this forms the basis for the difference in per capita funding.

In general, second level schools have a lower pupil teacher ratio, resulting in more classrooms and this would lead to higher per unit costs in second level schools for heat, light, power, maintenance and cleaning.

In addition the second level capitation is required to cover a different range of expenditures. Second level schools provide a broader curriculum, including technical subjects where the costs of materials may be greater than at primary level. In addition, specialist equipment and rooms are required for some subjects, leading to higher maintenance/replacement costs.

I am determined that education will be prioritised for further investment in future years, and I believe that increasing the staffing and funding of our schools should be priorities for such investment.

Teacher Recruitment

Ceisteanna (934)

Terence Flanagan

Ceist:

934. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding promotions for teaching staff (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21361/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

When the moratorium on the filling of posts of responsibility was introduced in 2009, the Government exempted Principal and Deputy Principal posts in all primary and post-primary schools. These posts continue to be replaced in the normal manner. The impact of the moratorium was therefore limited to the Assistant Principal and Special Duties posts of responsibility. The alleviation arrangements set out in Circular 0004/2014 provide a floor by which schools acutely affected at AP level by the impact of the moratorium can fill their AP vacancies as they arise to the level of the thresholds set out in that circular.

It continues to be a matter for each individual school authority to reorganise and prioritise the appropriate duties for post of responsibility holders in the context of implementing the moratorium.

Teachers' Remuneration

Ceisteanna (935)

Terence Flanagan

Ceist:

935. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding teachers' pay (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21362/15]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Education and Skills

Due to worsening economic circumstances, the previous Government reduced the salaries and allowances payable of all new entrants to public service recruitment grades (including teachers) by 10% with effect from 1 January 2011 and required that such new entrants would start on the first point of the applicable salary scale.

Subsequently, arising from the public service-wide review of allowances and premium payments, the Government decided to withdraw or modify allowances for new beneficiary public servants with effect from 1 February 2012. As part of this, certain allowances were withdrawn for new beneficiary teachers, including qualification allowances. However, the Government partially compensated for this by deciding that new entrant teachers would henceforth commence on a new salary scale which had a starting point higher than the starting point of the old scale.

Under the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013 – 2016 (Haddington Road Agreement), revised pay scales for post-1 January 2011 and post-1 February 2012 entrants to teaching were agreed and implemented with effect from 1 July 2013.

The Haddington Road Agreement further provided that the salary imbalance between those who entered the public service since 2011 and those who entered before that date would be addressed. In that regard, my Department implemented a further revised incremental salary scale for teachers who entered teaching between 1 January 2011 and 31 January 2012 with effect from 1 November 2013. Allowances payable to post-1 January 2011 entrants and such allowances as remain payable to post-1 February 2012 entrants were restored to pre-2011 levels as part of this measure.