Written Answers Nos. 445-467
445. Deputy James Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Skills the timeframe for the construction and remaining stages of a new building for a college (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1735/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy may be aware, the project to which he refers has been devolved for delivery to the local Education and Training Board (ETB).
Planning permission has been received for the project which is at the detailed design stage. In this regard, the Stage 2B submission was recently submitted to my Department for examination and approval. The outcome of this examination will be conveyed to the ETB as soon as it is available. As the project is still in architectural planning, it is not possible at this time to put a timeframe on when the project will commence on site.
446. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills the names of all agencies contracted by his Department to provide relationships and sexuality education and social, personal and health education over the course of the last four years; the costs incurred; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1750/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has not contracted any agencies to provide relationship and sexuality education and social personal and health education over the course of the past four years. National and international research has consistently shown that the qualified classroom teacher is the best placed professional to work sensitively and consistently with students and that s/he can have a powerful impact on influencing students’ attitudes, values and behaviour in all aspects of health education.
Circular 23 of 2010 which issued to all Post-Primary Schools advised that the SPHE/RSE programme should have a substantial skills development element and should not merely be information based. Such skills are developed over time and founded on an on-going relationship based on trust, understanding and mutual respect.
Circular 22 of 2010 which issued to all Primary Schools advised that a whole-school approach to the consistent implementation of SPHE is essential and that the classroom teacher is responsible for the implementation of the SPHE curriculum.
Young people flourish in an environment where there is a whole-school approach to the holistic growth of students and where there is a shared belief in their potential for development, learning and wellbeing.
At primary level, every teacher is fully trained to deliver the SPHE programme, as part of their Initial Teacher Education programme. The Health and Wellbeing Team in the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST) provides an extensive programme of continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities to support teachers and schools in the implementation of RSE and SPHE programmes in primary and post-primary schools.
447. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the lack of space for teaching at a school (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1772/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra448. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Education and Skills if alternative sites for appropriate accommodation of a school (details supplied) have been considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1773/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 447 and 448 together.
I wish to advise the Deputy that the school referred to has submitted an application to my Department for capital funding for additional accommodation. The Deputy is aware that the school has indicated that the school site is constrained. My Department will continue to engage with the school authority in the context of assisting the school to meet its additional accommodation needs.
449. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Education and Skills when a decision will issue on an appeal by a school (details supplied) to his Department’s buildings and planning unit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1774/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI can confirm to the Deputy that my Department approved funding to the school in question to construct a Home Economics Room.
The school has since written to my Department seeking additional accommodation. The school's correspondence will be considered and a decision will be conveyed to the school authority subsequently.
450. Deputy Margaret Murphy O'Mahony asked the Minister for Education and Skills the proportion of employees in his Department or in organisations under its remit registered disabled. [1855/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Disability Act 2005 requires public bodies to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities and to achieve a target of 3% of staff with disabilities. In this Department in 2016 the percentage of employees with a disability under the definition of the Disability Act 2005 is 3.94%
Under relevant legislation, aegis bodies of my Department are required to provide my Department's monitoring Committee with data on the number of people with disabilities employed in respect of the preceding year for the inclusion in the overall report to National Disability Authority.
Of the eighteen bodies required to report under the legislation, thirteen have reported 3% or higher of their staff as having a disability and overall compliance was up from 3.8% in 2015 to 4% in 2016
Under the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities, which was published in 2015, the Government committed to progressively increasing the public employment target from 3% to 6% and my department and its agencies will continue to work to achieve the new targets.
452. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to address the financial difficulties facing post-leaving certificate students as reported in the recent Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, evaluation and An tSeirbhís Oideachais Leanúnaigh agus Scileanna, SOLAS, recommendations (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1888/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraLast week, I published the ESRI evaluation of the PLC programme along with the SOLAS response, which sets out 45 recommendations to address the findings of the evaluation and improve the quality of the learner experience, learner outcomes and overall programme efficiency.
A SOLAS led PLC Programme Improvement Advisory Committee, comprised of PLC partners, will now be established by SOLAS to oversee development and implementation of a three year programme improvement plan, based on the recommendations set out in the SOLAS response, which include the development of a framework for appropriate learner supports as well as a review of the distribution of PLC places, taking into account a number of factors including the deprivation index.
Quarterly implementation progress reports will be published by SOLAS, following their review by the SOLAS Board, my Department and the National Skills Council.
It should also be noted that eligible PLC learners are entitled to student grant funding under the same terms, conditions and rates as third level students, details of which are available on the SUSI website at www.susi.ie and are also exempt from making the PLC participant contribution.
Eligible PLC learners in receipt of certain payments from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP) will also qualify for a Back to Education Allowance (BTEA), details of which are available from DEASP who administer the scheme.
453. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Education and Skills if a site was identified in Wexford town for the development of a university campus; if so, the location of same; and the proposed date for the commencement of works. [1904/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department has agreed to provide funding to enable Institute of Technology Carlow to acquire a site in County Wexford, with a view to developing a new purpose-built campus on the site.
However, given the commercial sensitivities associated with land acquisitions, I am not in a position to comment on progress with respect to this acquisition at this time.
454. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Education and Skills the rationale behind Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI's, new third-party representation process; and the rationale for not now accepting email consent contrary to its email dated 5 December 2017 outlining the new process. [1906/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn order to respond to information requests made by third parties, including public representatives, on behalf of student grant applicants in a manner that is fully compliant with the Data Protection Acts 1988 and 2003 and as reflected the SUSI Data Protection Statement, SUSI must be satisfied that grant applicants and other parties to their grant applications have consented that their personal information may be released to third parties.
This consent may be given in different formats depending on whether the information to which the third party request relates is the information of either the grant applicant themselves or of another party to their application (such as a parent or spouse). In practice, and particularly where the third party request relates to the total household income relevant to a grant application, confirmation in the relevant form is required from the applicant and from each other party to the application.
The preferred form of consent for all parties to an application is that it should be given in writing through the submission of a signed third party authorisation form that is available in the forms section of the SUSI website (www.susi.ie/susi-forms).
However, in the case of requests relating only to the information of grant applicants themselves, the consent can alternatively be given either by e-mail sent by the applicant from their registered SUSI account (as this sufficiently verifies the consent) or it can be given verbally by the applicant over the telephone (where the applicant is present with the third party requester at the time the request is made).
For requests relating to the information of any other party to a grant application such as a parent or spouse, the required consent can only be given in writing through the submission of the signed third party authorisation form. Note that the consent of the applicant is also required to be included in the form in this case as the request concerns their application.
SUSI has notified this procedure to all public representatives from whom it currently receives requests for information on behalf of grant applicants and is notifying the procedure to all other requesters on a case by case basis as new requests are received. I have requested that SUSI issue any necessary clarifications of the procedure that may be required in this regard.
455. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he has received correspondence from a school (details supplied) in County Donegal; if the school capitation grant will be increased in view of the hardship faced by schools across the country since cuts to the grant were made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1921/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department recently received the correspondence referred to by the Deputy.
I do recognise the need to improve capitation funding for schools having regard to the reductions that were necessary over recent years.
Budget 2018 marks the second year of major reinvestment in the education sector, as we continue to implement the Action Plan for Education, which has the central aim to make the Irish Education and Training service the best in Europe within a decade. In 2018, the budget for the Department of Education will increase by €554 million to over €10 billion.
Capitation funding remains a priority for me to address as part of the Action Plan.
The process is underway for restoring grant funding that is used by schools to fund the salaries of ancillary staff. Circular 0079/2017 outlines the current rate increases in order to enable schools implement the arbitration salary increase for grant funded school secretaries and caretakers and to also implement the restoration of salary for cleaners arising from the unwinding of FEMPI legislation.
456. Deputy Seamus Healy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the construction of a new school building; and if confirmation that funding will be included in the upcoming capital programme for a school (details supplied). [1930/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe major building project referred to by the Deputy is at an advanced stage of architectural planning, Stage 2b (Detailed Design), which includes the application for statutory approvals and the preparation of tender documents.
The Design Team has submitted written confirmation that it has completed a final review and is satisfied that the tender documents are complete, correct and in compliance with DoES and Building Control (Amendment) Regulations (BC(A)R) tender documentation requirements.
My Department is currently reviewing its programme for capital expenditure in 2018 and 2019. Building projects, including the project for the school to which the Deputy refers, will be considered in that context. Officials from my Department will shortly be in contact with the school regarding a timeframe for progression of this project.
457. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 204 of 27 June 2017, 224 of 20 September 2017 and 51 of 25 October 2017, when the eligibility review will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1932/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy is aware, the review of Caranua is confined to the issue of eligibility of persons who may access the fund. The initial phase, which involves a review of Caranua’s expenditure to date and an estimation of the projected expenditure taking into account applications on hand and anticipated further applications together with an estimation of any possible underspend of the available funding, is nearing completion.
458. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills when a special autism unit will be set up in a school (details supplied). [1952/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department’s policy is that children with special educational needs including those with Autism, should be included in mainstream placements with additional supports provided, unless such a placement would not be in their best interests or in the interests of the children with whom they are to be educated, as is provided for under Section 2 of the Education of Persons with Special Needs Act 2004.
Such placements facilitate access to individualised education programmes which may draw from a range of appropriate educational interventions, delivered by fully qualified professional teachers, with the support of Special Needs Assistants and the appropriate school curriculum.
Some children may be supported in a special class attached to a mainstream school which offers a supportive learning environment to students who are unable to access the curriculum in a mainstream class. These students have the option, where appropriate, of full/partial integration and interaction with other students.
Other children may have such complex needs that the recommendation in their professional reports state that they are best placed in a special school.
Decisions about placement should be based on individual needs and take into account a number of factors including parental wishes, availability of evidence-based treatments and well-trained staff and individual factors such as targets for intervention and management of behaviours.
There is therefore not one preferred educational environment for children with special educational needs, rather there is a model which takes into account the assessed educational needs of individual students.
Students enrolling in Special Classes must have a report from a relevant professional or team of professionals (for example, psychologist, speech and language therapist, psychiatrist) stating that:
- S/he has a disability (in line with the designation of the special class in question) and
- S/he has significant learning needs that require the support of a special class setting and the reasons why this is the case.
The National Council for Special Education(NCSE), through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), in consultation with the relevant education partners, is responsible for the establishment of special classes to support children with Special Educational Needs, including Autism, in various geographical areas where there is an identified need.
The NCSE, in looking to open special classes, must take into account the present and future potential need for such classes, taking particular account of the educational needs of the children concerned. The NCSE will also take account of location and sustainability in looking to establish special classes in certain areas.
My Department continues to work with the NCSE to ensure that there is appropriate planning in place to ensure that all children who require special class placements can access such placements in schools within their communities.
In the case of existing schools, where a school is not in a position to accommodate a special class within its existing accommodation, it is open to the school to submit an application to the Department for capital funding to (i) re-configure existing spaces within the school building to accommodate the class or (ii) to construct additional accommodation.
I am aware that the NCSE has approached the school referred to by the Deputy to establish a special class for the coming school year and that my Department is currently reviewing the accommodation needs for the school.
459. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills when consent and the terms of consent for the sale of an old school building (details supplied) will be given. [1953/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn circumstances where a property has ceased to be used as a school, and a request is received to release the State's interest secured under a charging lease, such requests are considered in the context of the specific circumstances which pertain to the individual property. I can confirm that my Department has received a request from the property owners to release my interest in the property to which the Deputy refers.
Officials from my Department are currently considering a request received in respect of the property referred to by the Deputy and will be in contact with the relevant property owners as soon as possible.
460. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Education and Skills if the HEA will provide a breakdown of the funding made available to an institute (details supplied) in 2016 and to date in 2018; if a copy of the agreement made between the ucation Authority, HEA, and the institute can be provided to indicate the specific spending requirements agreed to at the time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1955/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn 2014 a working group was established to examine the financial viability of a school of the multi-campus institute referred to by the Deputy. Following the recommendations of this Group my Department approved ring-fenced funding of €750k per annum for 4 years from 2017 to 2020 which equates to a total of €3 million.
The decision is subject to a plan including rebranding, continued part time student growth, increase engagement with the ETB, development of new undergraduate programmes and cost cutting measures which will be put in place.
The appointment of an independent external financial expert, Mr Michael O’Connell, was agreed with the Institute to review the campus and ensure that the overall institute could return to a balanced budget position. This review has been completed and a five year plan to facilitate this has been put in place. This plan is currently being updated following a meeting with HEA in December 2017 and a scheduled meeting is proposed in March 2018. Of the overall grant allocation, the DES has directed that this additional funding is to support the ongoing costs of the Campus and to assist the Institute in implementing the above plans and recommendations to return the institute financial stability.
461. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on a motion (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1991/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe early childhood education and care sector is largely funded and regulated by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. The Department of Education and Skills plays an important role in the development and implementation of the two national practice frameworks, Síolta (quality) and Aistear (curriculum). My Department also supports and advises the Department of Children and Youth Affairs on qualifications and workforce development and is in the process of conducting a review of education and training programmes for early years practitioners. My Department, with its agencies, works to ensure that there is a smooth transition for children from pre-school into the primary school sector and also supports the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in the implementation of AIM – the Access and Inclusion Model for children with disabilities. However, beyond the promotion of this alignment and support for quality, there is no plan to further integrate the schools sector - statutory provision for which lies with the Minister for Education and Skills - with the formal Early Childhood Education and Care sector which is the responsibility of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs.
462. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the recent Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, report on post-leaving certificate courses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2029/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI welcome the ESRI report on the evaluation of the PLC programme which is a strong endorsement of PLC provision. The report provides a solid evidence base to inform future policy development and to ensure provision is planned to meets the needs of learners and employers, taking into account all of the changes that have taken place, particularly in the labour market, since the programme was established in the mid 80s.
It confirms the positive role played by PLCs in providing education for a diverse range of learners, highlighting that on average PLC learners are 16% more likely to be employed and 27% more likely to have progressed to higher education, than those who left education with the Leaving Certificate alone. It also points to a greater need to develop systems to ensure that PLC courses focused on the labour market are aligned with employer requirements and are responsive to changing labour market needs.
Arising from the evaluation, SOLAS will shortly establish the PLC Programme Improvement Advisory Committee, comprised of PLC partners, to oversee development and implementation of a three year programme improvement plan. Based on the recommendations set out in the SOLAS response, implementation of the plan will ensure delivery of high quality education and training supporting learners to achieve their progression and employment goals.
SOLAS will publish quarterly implementation progress reports, following their review by the SOLAS Board and my Department.
463. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department uses anti-profanity software in its email systems and online contact forms; if so, the level of human oversight that is applied to the monitoring of this software and its effectiveness; his views on whether persons' legitimate right to petition Government may be blocked unintentionally by errors in the use of such software in determining that which qualifies as profanity being communicated in email or online contact forms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2084/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Education in Skills has email filtering in place which endeavours to quarantine incoming emails that are categorised as containing profanities. The email filtering also endeavours to quarantine incoming email categorised as being of excessive size, containing viruses/malware/executables, originating from sites with a poor reputation or spam.
Specifically in relation to profanity, all my Department's incoming email communications are routed through a commercial email filtering system which endeavours to quarantine emails that are categorised as containing profane text or images. The system’s profanity filtering capabilities are based on the sender's reputation as well as internal dictionaries and other technology proprietary to the vendor of the email filtering system.
All emails that are quarantined for reasons of profanity are notified to the intended recipient who is advised of the sender and the subject line of the quarantined email. Once the intended recipient declares that the email is business related they are released from quarantine, otherwise they are deleted after fifteen days. My Department’s email filtering system therefore facilitates the notification to the intended recipient of all emails quarantined for reasons of profanity, including those blocked inadvertently and allows for their release.
In relation to the level of human oversight of incoming emails that are quarantined for reasons of profanity, both the intended recipient as already outlined and also the IT system administrators have oversight of the email filtering system. The email filtering function provides the Department with the ability to edit and amend the profanity filters as well as perform its own content filtering.
There is currently no filtering in place in respect of the Department’s online forms.
464. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Education and Skills the Government's initiatives in his Department in 2017 that promoted State services or welfare payments, public awareness of regulatory changes and public consultations that involved advertising and promotion on television, radio, in newspapers and online, in tabular form; and the level of expenditure for each such initiative. [2260/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraDetails in relation to advertising for information campaigns in 2017 in my Department will be collated in early 2018. I will arrange to have the information forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it has been compiled.
The deferred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.
465. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of atypical work permits issued to previously undocumented non-EU fishing workers annually since the scheme was established. [54494/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra466. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of pending applications for atypical work permits for previously undocumented non-EU fishing workers. [54495/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra467. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications under the atypical non-EU migrant fishing worker scheme to change the employer to which they were originally documented under the scheme; and the number of these applications to change employer granted since the scheme began. [54496/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 465 to 467, inclusive, together.
I have been advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the Atypical Working Scheme for Seafarers commenced in February 2016. This provided a lawful pathway for persons, previously with no immigration or employment permission, to work lawfully in the Irish fishing fleet on boats of 15 metres and over in length. This was not a regularisation of undocumented workers but rather the putting in place, for the first time, of a regulatory regime for the employment of non-EEA workers in this sector of the fishing industry.
It was first open to all persons who were employed as fishermen without the appropriate immigration permission to apply under the scheme. This facility was open to them between February 2016 and July 2016. A total of 152 non-EEA nationals were given a permission under the scheme under these conditions and I assume these are the persons referred to by the Deputy as "previously undocumented". Of the original 152 persons admitted to the scheme, some 108 renewed their permission in 2017.
Following that period, applications under the scheme could only be made from outside the State, or as a renewal of an existing permission.
Since the commencement of the scheme in 2016 a total of 5 persons have sought to renew their permission with a different employer.
