I accept and the Department accepts the need for the building to progress. I want to be clear that it has devolved to the school authority. It appears there are site-specific challenges. It appears there were two outstanding technical recommendations for the site. They have been communicated to the school authority. We await what further progress the school authority can make. It has been advised of the two challenges that have been raised. The Department is awaiting the design team's response. The Deputy will appr…

I assure the Deputy that the provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs, is an absolute priority for the Department. To plan for school place needs, the Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and utilises a geographical information system to anticipate school place demand. Information from a range of sources, including child benefit data, school enrolment data a…

I am. I know they have a joint system. Where forecasts indicate growing enrolments, the Department first considers available capacity within the existing schools. Where additional provision is needed, the options considered are the expansion of existing schools or the establishment of one or more new schools. In response to the projections of school place needs in Limerick city, the Department is providing significant additional post-primary capacity, including new 1,000-pupil school buildings for two recently esta…

I acknowledge again that the common application system that operates in Limerick is a superb system and is one born of co-operation between all of the schools on the sharing of information. There is often a challenge where there are multiple applications across a number of systems. I want to acknowledge that in the first instance. I also want to acknowledge that, because of that system, issues were flagged in terms of the need for additional places. In that respect, there have been achievements, with 11 schools acr…

To be fair, we have seen considerable progress in Limerick and we are also seeing very considerable investment by the Department in either new school buildings or additional accommodation. I have listed them for the Deputy, whether it is the 1,000-pupil school buildings for two recently established schools, Mungret Community College and Limerick ETSS, the new school buildings for Laurel Hill, including the Gaelcholáiste aspect of Laurel Hill, Ardscoil Mhuire and Gaelcholáiste Luimnigh, as well as extensions at Cast…

I believe it is crucial that all children and young people are actively supported to access education in its fullest forms and I know that I am supported by the Government in this belief. Since June 2020, and over the past three budgets, I have secured funding to support measures aimed at achieving that goal. One of the most important policies in this regard has been the establishment of Ireland’s first free primary schoolbook scheme, which has been fully funded to provide free schoolbooks, workbooks and copybooks …

I was very clear in giving the Deputy the context and the reasons behind this decision. I also outlined the process that was employed. Whether she accepts it or not, the process was borne of experience. As I said, we had three years of data, which is considerable, from the 100 primary schools that ran the pilot free schoolbook scheme. That was a considerable source of data. The process involved direct engagement with a sample of school types and sizes and detailed analysis of schoolbook lists by the Department. We …

Again, I want to be very clear that the figure of €96 was arrived at as a consequence of the considerable experience, not just from the pilot free book scheme but also the book rental scheme. There was also engagement in terms of looking at the most recent and up-to-date book lists that are distributed to schools. If one looks at the guidance that went out to schools, one will see that it specifically references textbooks, workbooks and copybooks. That is exactly what the book grant covers and that has been clear f…

The school transport scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been an increase of 21% in tickets issued to eligible students and 38% tickets issued on a concessionary basis in the current school year compared with the 2021-22 school year. In add…

I thank the Deputy and I appreciate the point she makes. I absolutely appreciate the importance of the school transport system for a whole variety of reasons for different people at different times, as the Deputy articulated. Specifically in respect of the topic, Bus Éireann will be reviewing applications and planning routes during the summer months for the upcoming year. It is important to acknowledge that the system is presently in train. The closing date for new applications for the 2023-24 school year was Frida…

On the cut-off point of 70 years of age, that is an operational matter for Bus Éireann. It is my understanding that Bus Éireann says it keeps it consistently under review. Specifically in terms of the wider appreciation of school transport and its importance, we have been very cognisant of that. Where we had the capacity last year there were no fees being requested. Now the fees have been reduced to €50 for primary and €75 for post-primary for the year's travel with a cap of €125 for the family. Specifically in res…

I wish to advise the Deputy again, in the interests of context, that in order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, the Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas and uses a geographical information system using data from a range of sources, including child benefit and school enrolment data to identify where the pressure for school places across the country, including Dundalk, will arise and where additional school accommodation is needed at either primary or pos…

I thank the Deputy and appreciate how positively he speaks of the school. I salute and acknowledge the excellent work that takes place in the school every single day to deliver education and cater to students. I want to make clear that there is not an application with the Department. It is open to the school to make an application and it will be evaluated at that time. I especially acknowledge the work on inclusive education and providing for children and young people with additional needs. The Minister of State, D…

I appreciate this matter crosses two different briefs as there is a further education element to it as well. I also appreciate that the Deputy may well have had conversations about what the college is intending to do and what its vision is. All I can say is we have a considerable record in delivery of new builds and additional accommodation. There were 180 builds last year and there are 300 on hand at this time, 40 of which are brand-new school builds with the remaining 260 additional accommodation. We have a budge…

The Deputy will recall that in May 2021 I launched Say Yes to Languages, a language sampler module for pupils from third to sixth class in all primary and special schools. The module aims to generate awareness among pupils of the range of languages used by their peers, support greater inclusion and appreciation of diversity in society and encourage uptake of languages at post-primary level. It runs for eight hours over a period of eight weeks. Participating schools are eligible for a grant from the Department of €4…

We have seen an incredible diversity of languages being chosen by schools. Some of them very much reflect the children and young people in the schools. Schools have autonomy to choose and decide on the language. We are fortunate to have teachers in place in our schools who are of Ukrainian background and have registered with the Teaching Council. We have seen considerable uptake, as I articulated, in the number of pupils. It has risen from 30,000 to 50,000, with projected figures for year 3 being even higher again.…

I will give him the data at the start, lest I forget. The proposed date is 16 June, at this point at any rate. We are possibly on target for that. There are criteria in place. The Deputy referenced geographic spread, which is hugely important and is one of the criteria. There is a range of school contexts, types of schools and so on. Diversity in the target languages applied for is also an element, so we have a great spread of languages. Many schools also have an internal capacity among their staff. The school must…

While the State Examinations Commission, SEC, is responsible for the operation, delivery and development of State examinations, I am very much aware of the importance for students, parents and education stakeholders of ensuring that the results of the 2023 leaving certificate are delivered in as timely a manner as possible. While it is not yet in a position to confirm the date of those results, I have informed the SEC that my wish and expectation is to see them being issued in August. I engage on an ongoing basis w…

Not for one minute do I underestimate the importance of the results coming out as early as possible. I acknowledge the work of the SEC, which stands over the integrity of the exams. The Deputy referenced the issue of examiners, but the SEC has additional responsibilities in terms of the provision of a deferred exam sitting. That deferral is right and proper. Everyone would agree that if, for an unfortunate reason, a student was not in a position to take the exams the first time around, he or she should have a secon…

The SEC is charged with overall responsibility for running this process and it has confirmed that it is still in the process. It has received a number of applications. We have seen a concerted effort from the SEC in terms of a significant increase in the rates being paid to examiners. This year, the typical earning range for a junior cycle examiner is between €4,858 and €5,010, while for leaving certificate examiners, it is between €7,721 and €10,844. These rates depend on the subject and the number of scripts mark…