Written Answers Nos. 176-184
178. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to continue support for smaller urban or rural schools with a denominational ethos; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10748/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is very aware of the importance of small schools to rural communities and particularly the most dispersed and remote communities.
To sustain primary schools in these communities my Department has a more favourable staffing schedule for small schools that are more than 8km distant from the next nearest school of the same type of patronage and language of instruction. This measure is designed to provide rural communities with security about the future of their small schools.
With regard to school ethos, the government supports the concept of parental choice in our school system, whether that be a choice for denominational or multi-denominational education.
In regard to retaining small schools, a specific commitment is given in the Programme for a Partnership Government not to close any small school without the consent of parents. I am mindful of the concerns of small schools and will take these into account in considering any planning for future provision.
179. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which he expects the education system at all levels to be in a position to meet the skills demand in the workplace; the extent to which apprenticeships are likely to impact on the situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10749/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraA number of my Department's policies and strategies acknowledge that the development of the skills of those at work will play a key role in the sustainable growth of our economy and society. The National Skills Strategy 2025, the Action Plan for Education, The SOLAS Further Education and Training Strategy, the Regional Skills Fora and Skillnets all have objectives that pertain to identifying and addressing the skills needs of employers and the workplace.
Measures such as the Further Education and Training Policy Framework for Workforce Development currently being developed by SOLAS is also a key Strategy that will identify and help address the skills demand in the workplace.
In relation to apprenticeships, The Action Plan for Education commits to achieving 50,000 apprenticeship and traineeship registrations in the period to 2020, a doubling of current activity levels. An Action Plan to Expand Apprenticeships and Traineeships in Ireland 2016-2020 was published in January 2017.
180. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the total number of schools throughout the country likely to benefit from refurbishment or replacement in 2017; the extent to which adequate budgetary provisions have been made in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10750/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere were 67 large scale projects under construction at the start of 2017 and a further 35 large scale projects have approval to advance to tender and construction during the year. It is expected that 46 of these projects will have reached substantial completion by the end of the year. Over €330m is available within the 2017 capital allocation for the delivery of large scale projects and a further €70m is available for the Additional Accommodation Scheme. It is expected that will provide up to 20,000 additional and replacement places for pupils.
Over 250 projects were approved in 2016 under my Department’s Additional Accommodation Scheme and it is expected that a similar number of applications will be approved in the course of 2017.
I also wish to advise the Deputy that nearly 50% of schools have applied for inclusion under the Summer Works Scheme (SWS) 2016 and 2017 which reflects a very high demand. Details of successful school applicants in respect of Categories 1 and 2 were announced in April last and are published on my Department’s website www.education.ie. I expect to be in a position to announce a further round of the SWS in due course.
181. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which he expects to be in a position to augment the career guidance service throughout second level education; his views on whether there will be an improvement in the short and medium term; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10751/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Action Plan for Education 2016-2019 has a specific action to enhance guidance counselling at second-level as resources permit.
A significant move was made in the 2016/17 school year with the restoration of half of the cut in provision for guidance counselling. This was the equivalent to the restoration of 300 posts.
The delivery of the 50% restoration through a change in the staffing schedule allowed each school to determine how best to allocate the additional resources to meet the guidance needs of the school. This additional resource was to complement existing resources in order to best meet the guidance needs of the school in line with the school's guidance plan.
It is important to note that in previous changes to guidance counselling allocations in 2012, as a consequence of the Budget adjustment which had to be made at the time, all DEIS schools were effectively sheltered from these changes as a result of the more favourable staffing schedule of 18.25:1. This was a 0.75 point improvement compared to the current PTR of 19:1 that applied in non-fee-paying second-level schools.
That was a very important protection for the cohort of our schools in DEIS most in need of support. DEIS schools also further benefitted from the 0.3 improvement to the staffing schedule which gave them an enhanced allocation on the basis of 17.95:1 in respect of the 2016/17 school year.
Budget 2017 has made provision for over 2,400 additional teaching posts for our primary and post primary schools next year. These posts will provide for an enhancement to the guidance counselling allocation, enhance the leadership and management roles of deputy principals at post-primary level, provide for individual professional time for teachers of Junior Cycle, additional posts to meet the demographic needs and additional resource posts to meet special education needs.
As a result of the decision to further enhance the guidance allocation to schools and provide schools with a separate allocation for guidance outside of the quota, the pupil teacher ratio (PTR) will revert to 19:1 with effect from September 2017. The guidance allocation will be shown separately on the staffing schedules and will represent 0.4 of the PTR for each school. DEIS schools will have a guidance allocation of 1.15 of the PTR which represents the total guidance allocation that was restored to these schools.
182. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of higher education grant applications received, pending, approved and refused for the current academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10752/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn respect of the 2016 scheme, SUSI has advised that the position as of the 27 of February 2017, is as follows:
- Applications received: 105,221
- Applications processed to completion: 104,677
- Applications pending: 544
- Of those applicants who have been processed to completion, the position is as follows:
- Applicants assessed as eligible for a grant: 83,524
- Applicants assessed as ineligible for a grant: 17,608
- Applications cancelled: 3,545*
Of the applications that were cancelled:
1,870 were cancelled at the request of the applicant.
1,670 were cancelled as the applicant originally applied under the wrong student category and it was necessary to cancel the application to allow the student to re-apply.
There were also some duplicate applications.
183. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which adequate resource teachers remain available throughout all schools in north Kildare; his plans for augmentation in specific areas of particular need; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10754/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn 18th January last, I announced that a new model for allocating Special Education Teaching Resources to mainstream primary and post primary schools will be introduced from September 2017.
The aim of this new model is to deliver better outcomes for children with special educational needs. Large amounts of research, analysis, consultation with service users and stakeholders, and piloting have gone in to the development of this model and all the evidence points to the fact that this new system will deliver better outcomes for children.
I also announced that an additional 900 teaching posts will be provided to support the introduction of this new allocation model. The provision of an additional 900 teaching posts is a very significant investment in the provision of additional teaching support for pupils with special educational needs in our schools. This is additional to an increase of 41% in the number of resource teachers allocated to schools annually by the NCSE since 2011, when 5265 teachers were allocated, as opposed to provision for 7542 posts in the current school year.
The additional funding will provide additional supports to over 1000 schools who are identified as needing additional supports as a result of the new model. Supports for children with special educational needs is a huge priority for this Government. We currently spend €1.6 billion, or one fifth of the total education budget, on supports for children with special educational needs.
This additional investment will ensure that all schools, including schools in north Kildare, will receive a sufficient allocation of special education needs resources to provide additional teaching support to all pupils in their school who require such support.
Under the new allocation model, schools will be provided with a total allocation which includes a baseline allocation for the school and an allocation based on the school profile.
The provision of a profiled allocation will give a fairer allocation for each school which recognises that all schools need an allocation for special needs support, but which provides a graduated allocation which takes into account the actual level of need in each school.
Schools will be front-loaded with resources, based on each school's profile, to provide supports immediately to those pupils who need it without delay. This will reduce the administrative burden on schools as schools will no longer have to complete an application process annually and apply for newly enrolled pupils who require resource hours. Children who need support can have that support provided immediately rather than having to wait for a diagnosis.
Schools will therefore no longer have to make applications, for newly enrolled pupils for whom resource teaching hours may have been provided under the old model, as schools will now receive a single allocation for all of their special education teaching needs, based on their school size and profile.
A new Circular will be issued to schools in the coming weeks which will provide details of how the scheme will operate while details of the allocations for each school will also be provided to schools.
184. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the fact that the board of Trinity College Dublin has decided that the majority of members of the college staff will no longer be eligible for natural promotion; his further views on the fact that permanent contracts are no longer to be offered to members of the college support and administrative staff and that the non-replacement of staff is leading to an onerous increase in workload for many staff members; his plans to rectify the situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10757/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraFollowing enquiries from my officials, I understand that discussions are taking place locally and under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission between Trinity College Dublin and the unions that are addressing the concerns of staff. Accordingly, it would not be appropriate for me to comment on these issues while these discussions are ongoing.
In May 2016 I welcomed the publication of the Report of the Chair of the Expert Group on Fixed Term and Part-Time issues in Lecturing in Ireland. The Report contains a number of recommendations that will assist in addressing concerns raised about the level of part-time and fixed-term employment in lecturing in the third level sector.
My Department issued directions to the sector on the 4th July 2016 to implement the recommendations contained in the report in accordance with the terms of the Lansdowne Road Agreement and my understanding is that the Institutions are taking steps to do so.
The above-mentioned Report is specific to concerns raised about part-time and fixed-term employment in lecturing and its recommendations are not applicable to non-lecturing grades.
In line with the Universities Act, 1997, third-level institutions have autonomy in relation to human resource policies, subject to compliance with Government policy in respect of employment numbers and pay policy. Employers in the higher education sector are also required to operate in accordance with the provisions of national industrial relations agreements.
