Written Answers Nos. 225-234
225. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason there is no choice in education in an area (details supplied) in Dublin 3; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38598/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware, the Programme for Government gives a commitment to move towards a more pluralist system of patronage for our schools. In this context, the government established a Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector. The Forum advised on how the education system can provide a sufficiently diverse number and range of primary schools catering for all religions and none and also advised on the practicalities of transferring/divesting patronage for individual primary schools where it is appropriate and necessary. Arising from the work of the Forum, eight new primary schools with a multi-denominational ethos have opened so far under the patronage divesting process. Work is continuing to advance choices in other identified areas. I intend to meet with the Catholic bishops in order to re-invigorate the patronage divestment process. New schools are established to meet demographic need. In the past ten years the total pupil enrolment in first and second level schools has risen by almost 100,000 pupils. Enrolment levels are still rising annually at both levels and are projected to rise by some 44,000 pupils in 2018/19 compared with current levels. This level of increase has meant that the available financial resources have to be prioritised towards ensuring that every child has access to a physical school place. The new school establishment arrangements introduced in 2011 place a strong emphasis on parental choice. In any area identified as requiring a new school it is open to all patron/prospective patron bodies to make an application for patronage under the patronage determination process. Forty two new schools have opened since 2011 (24 primary and 18 post-primary). 39 of these schools have a multi-denominational ethos.
226. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Education and Skills the percentage of staff in her Department capable of dealing with the public in the Irish language; if there are training programmes in place for staff to improve their level of working Irish; the provision there is for other minority languages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38622/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraA survey of my Department's administrative staff conducted in 2013 indicated that approximately 10% of staff have proficiency in Irish. 1.5% of administrative staff indicated a high level of proficiency in Irish while 8.7% of staff indicated a medium level of proficiency. In addition to the administrative staff, many field staff such as inspectors and educational psychologists have a high level of proficiency in Irish. Opportunities to improve Irish language skills are also offered to inspectors as part of the programme of training managed within the Inspectorate. At primary level, the Inspectorate provides an inspection service in both Irish and English to all recognised schools including schools in the Gaeltacht and all-Irish schools. At post-primary level, the Inspectorate provides a service in the inspection of teaching and learning in Irish through its Subject Inspection model and provides an inspection service through Irish in all schools in the Gaeltacht or all-Irish schools. During whole school evaluations, inspection questionnaires for parents are provided in Latvian, Lithuanian and Polish if required. Inspectors also examine provision for students with English as an additional language in the course of many models of inspections. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) also delivers its services through Irish to the said type of schools. The Department's Staff Training and Development Unit (STDU) is committed to providing appropriate training and development opportunities, including Irish Language training, for all staff to meet priority business needs.
227. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Skills the current pupil-teacher ratio at primary level and at secondary level and the pupil-teacher ratio that will exist when the extra teaching resources announced in the budget are fully in place. [38651/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Statistics Section of my Department's website contains extensive data relating to schools at primary and post-primary level, including data relating to PTRs. The most recent published information which includes the primary PTR 16.2 and post primary PTR 14:2, relates to the 2014/15 school year. Data for the current school year, including PTRs, will be published when the national school annual census has been processed later in the current school year.
Teacher allocations to all schools are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. The staffing schedule currently operates on the basis of 1 classroom teacher for an average of every 28 pupils at primary level and 1 teacher for every 19 pupils at post-primary level, with lower thresholds for DEIS Band 1 schools. The Deputy will be aware that I have made provision in Budget 2016 for some 2,260 additional teaching posts for our primary and post primary schools next year. These posts will provide for an improvement in the staffing schedules at primary and post primary levels, enhance the leadership and management roles of deputy principals at post-primary level by reducing their teaching time, an improvement to the scheme of release time for principal teachers at primary level and additional resource posts to meet special education needs. At primary level from next September the primary staffing schedule will operate on the basis of a general average of 1 classroom teacher for every 27 pupils. At post-primary level the schedule will improve by .3 points, from 19:1 to 18.7:1. The impact of these additional posts on PTR at national level will not be available until the annual census process for the 2016/17 has been completed.
228. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills the programme of works and funding per year to be expended on the Digital Strategy for primary schools and for secondary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38655/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy is aware, I launched the Digital Strategy for Schools on 7 October last. A fund of €210m to support the implementation of this strategy has been announced, beginning with an investment of €30m in the next school year (2016/2017), rising to €50m a year towards the end of the strategy. The Digital Strategy for Schools sets out an ambitious Five Year Plan to embed ICT in teaching, learning and assessment. The Strategy is developed around four key themes namely: Teaching, Learning and Assessment using ICT, Teacher Professional Learning, Leadership, Research and Policy and ICT Infrastructure.
My Department has developed a series of objectives (36 in total) and associated actions under each of the above themes to progress ICT integration over the lifetime of the Strategy. Some of the immediate actions to be undertaken are as follows:
- We will provide training and other supports to teachers to develop their ICT skills so they can exploit digital learning for their students across all areas of the curriculum.
- provide advice and guidance for teachers and schools including examples of good practice on the use of ICT for teaching, learning and assessment.
- provide a suite of high-quality digital content to use in schools.
- NCCA to give advice to me on how to develop what is available to Leaving cert students. This advice will include examining how digital skills can be developed and how an in-depth course in ICT could be part of the Senior Cycle, as well as how to embed digital skills within other subjects.
The Digital Strategy for Schools and the full action plans is available on my Department's website at http://www.education.ie/en/Publications/Policy-Reports/Digital-Strategy-for-Schools-2015-2020.pdf.
229. Deputy Shane Ross asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she is aware of the the chronic lack of places for students within the autistic spectrum disorder in special classes attached to mainstream secondary schools contrary to section 2 of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004; if she will consider directing schools to set up autism spectrum disorder-specific special classes within all secondary schools, as required; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38656/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe policy of my Department is that children with special educational needs, including children with autism, should be included where possible and appropriate in mainstream placements with additional supports provided. In circumstances where children with special educational need require more specialised interventions, special school or special class places are also available. 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 establish such new special classes, where necessary, subject to the willingness of schools to open classes. Parents can choose to enrol children with autism in an early intervention class from the age of three and where such a placement is not available home tuition is approved. Children with autism over the age of four may also be eligible for home tuition if a school placement is not available for them. My officials have been advised by the NCSE that for children with autism there are now 762 special classes nationwide in mainstream schools, 116 of which are early intervention settings, 452 in primary schools and 194 at post primary level. 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.
230. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Education and Skills the funding allocated by her Department to organisations not audited directly by the Comptroller and Auditor General; the names of these organisations; the funding allocated to each over the past five years; the process in place to ensure that value for money is achieved and that the funding allocated is audited; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38668/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe information sought is being compiled at present and will be forwarded to the Deputy shortly.
231. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the status of Ireland's position regarding European Union climate change targets; our ability to meet these targets; the possibility and likely scale of fines as a result of not meeting these targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38593/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFor each year between 2013 and 2020, Ireland has a greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction target under the 2009 Effort Sharing Decision (ESD) No. 406/2009/EC. For the year 2020 itself, the target set for Ireland is that emissions should be 20 per cent below their value in 2005, with the target for each of the years 2014 through 2019 on a straight-line trajectory between the targets for 2013 and 2020.
I am satisfied that Ireland is on course to comply with the annual mitigation targets in the first half of the 2013-2020 compliance period. However, there will be a significant compliance challenge in the years 2017-2020.
In May 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published new annual emission limits and projected emissions for 2020 which indicate that Ireland's emissions in 2020 could be in the range of 9-14% below 2005 levels. However, even in the worst case scenario (i.e., a 9% reduction), Ireland could be very close to meeting its cumulative compliance obligations for the period 2013-2020, which on average require a 12% reduction relative to 2005, given over-compliance in the early years of the 8-year period.
The extent of the challenge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in line with our EU and international commitments, is well understood by Government, as reflected in the National Policy Position on Climate Action and Low-Carbon Development, published in April 2014, and in the Climate Action and Low-Carbon Development Bill 2015 , published earlier this year and which I expect to be enacted before the end of the year. The National Policy Position provides a high-level policy direction for the adoption and implementation by Government of plans to enable the State to move to a low-carbon economy by 2050. Proposed statutory authority for the plans is set out in the Climate Action and Low-Carbon Development Bill 2015.
Recognising the 2020 compliance challenge, the first iteration of the National Mitigation Plan, as provided for in the Climate Bill, will place particular focus on putting the necessary measures in place to address this particular challenge in the years 2017 to 2020 but also in terms of planning ahead to ensure that appropriate policies and measures will be in place beyond this period. It is important to note that the Bill will provide for long-term successive planning in this respect.
In relation to targets beyond 2020, while Member State targets for 2030 are yet to be agreed, it is known that targets will be in the range of a 0% to 40% reduction relative to 2005, and that targets for Member States whose GDP per capita is above average should be adjusted to reflect cost effectiveness in a fair and balanced manner. A Commission proposal on this matter is expected in the second quarter of 2016.
232. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the date on which his Department first discussed the option of using modular housing units to house persons experiencing homelessness with representatives from Dublin City Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38420/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn the ordinary course of housing-related engagements between my Department and local authorities, the main options for securing social housing delivery would normally arise for discussion. The specific programme of modular housing provision now being progressed was advanced following my visit on 14 September 2015 to the demonstration of modular housing types organised by Dublin City Council.
233. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the measures his Department is taking to address the cost of €185,000 to build one social housing unit; if he expects this cost to reduce in 2016; and if so, to what price; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38424/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraSocial housing is procured in accordance with the relevant EU and domestic legislative and policy requirements as determined by the National Public Procurement Policy Guidance and Capital Works Management Framework published by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. Value for money is a critical and inherent objective of the procurement process.
In general terms the cost of delivering a social housing unit is dependent on the type, size and geographic location of the unit concerned and on the contractual arrangements leading to its procurement, which may involve a variety of short-term or long-term leasing arrangements, purchase or commissioning options exercised by a local authority or an approved housing body.
The prevailing economic conditions at present suggest that housing costs, including social housing costs, are more likely to rise rather than fall during 2016. This is due to the fact that housing supply currently falls significantly short of housing demand and construction input costs are subject to inflationary pressures, as the construction industry transitions from under-activity over an extended period to significant growth in all sectors (i.e. residential, commercial and civil construction).
The Government's Construction 2020 Strategy sets out a range of measures designed to address issues in the property and construction sectors and ensure that any bottlenecks that might impede the sector are addressed. A copy of the Strategy is available at the following weblink: http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/eng/Publications/Publications_2014/Construction_Strategy_14th_May_2014.html.
In addition, the Social Housing Strategy 2020, which is available on my Department's website at the following link;
http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/DevelopmentandHousing/Housing/FileDownLoad,39622,en.pdf, sets out a range of measures to which the Government has committed in order to deliver good quality housing supports to those who need them in a sustainable and cost effective manner.
234. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if water charges will be billed to modular housing units; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38426/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has no involvement or role in operational matters, such as those raised in the Question, which are solely a matter for the relevant local authority, in this case Dublin City Council.
