I agree with the Deputy. I believe there is an opportunity - it is one that we are taking via the review - to carry out a complete root and branch of the school transport service as regards how it meets the needs of students and families. The Deputy referred to how we can integrate the service, ensure best value for everybody concerned and so forth. He is correct that the interim review results led to me making the decision to accommodate those who are attending their second nearest school. Decisions regarding meas…

In the first instance, I acknowledge that measures have already been introduced in the area of school transport costs and the cost of living. The Deputy will be aware that the Government announced there would be a reduced cap for fees for multiple children at post-primary level. It has now been reduced from €650 to €500 and from €220 to €150 at primary level. I am very conscious of the importance of the scheme and measures of this nature. Obviously, we must look at everything in a budgetary context going forward. I…

The major building project for Gaelcholáiste Phort Láirge, Ballygunner, Waterford, will be delivered under the Department's accelerated delivery of architectural planning and tendering, ADAPT, programme. This programme uses a professional external project manager to co-ordinate and drive the design team to achieve the best possible timeframe for the project through the stages of architectural planning to tender and, ultimately, construction. This is the third ADAPT delivery programme undertaken by my Department sin…

I thank the Deputy. I sincerely acknowledge the excellent work that goes on in the school, including its delivery of education to its students, its role in the community and the excellence of the entire school community. This school is a priority for delivery but there is a process. On the procurement process, in the first instance, the appointment of the project manager involved a detailed commercial process that had to be completed. It is very positive that the process has been completed. It is particularly posit…

Every opportunity is being provided here. The Department is very clear in its intention to deliver an ambitious schools building programme throughout the country which includes this school. As the Deputy can see from the report I have given, the project is moving apace. It is a significant acknowledgement that following the appointment of the project manager, the site visit has taken place and now we can continue to move apace, to use the Deputy's phrase. It is important for the benefit of all school communities th…

School secretaries and caretakers, as we have all agreed in this House, are very valued members of our school communities. I am fully aware of the vitally important role played by them in the running of our schools. I fully support, as does everyone, this important agreement which will improve their terms and conditions, and rightly so. The majority of primary and post-primary schools receive assistance to provide for secretarial services under grant schemes. Where a school employs a staff member to support those f…

I have worked long enough in the sector to know that this had to be a priority for delivery. I was very pleased with the endorsement of the proposal in a ballot in which 95% of school secretaries voted in favour of the deal. However, I will be upfront and honest that there is a considerable body of work involved here. Each secretary is employed by the relevant school board of management. The work has commenced in conjunction with Fórsa. It is a complex process of assimilation of information in order that accurate d…

I assure the Deputy that absolute priority has been given to this matter. As I outlined, the individual case for each of the secretaries is not just a matter of acknowledging that there are secretaries in each of the schools. It is also a matter of gathering the individual data for each of the secretaries in terms of his or her service. That is a body of work and we are giving absolute priority to it. The complex process has already begun. The resources that are required from my Department have been put in place. T…

As the Deputy will be aware, for school planning purposes 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 school enrolment data and information on residential development activity, is used for this purpose. Additionally, Project Ireland 2040 population and housing targets inform the Department's projections of school place requirements. Having considered the projected re…

We keep everything under constant review in terms of demand for places. It is important to point out there has been significant development in the east Cork area. The Deputy referenced Carrigtwohill Community College. That will be a new school building which will cater for 1,000 pupils plus 3 SEN classes and it is being delivered under the Department's design and build programme. It is currently at stage 4. The letter of acceptance issued to the preferred tender on 1 June, commencing the school building contract fo…

I thank Deputies Stanton and Buckley and acknowledge their ongoing interest in this area. I also acknowledge the ongoing commitment of, and ongoing discussions with, Deputy O'Connor with regard to east Cork. As I have said, I am very familiar with the area and am very conscious of its growth and development. I appreciate the Deputies' acknowledgment of the significant investment the Department is making in the east Cork area. It speaks for itself. When I list the schools, it is very obvious we are committed to deli…

As the Deputy will be aware, the State Examinations Commission, SEC, has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the leaving certificate examinations. The State Examinations Commission and the Department of Education are acutely aware of the needs of candidates and other stakeholders in regard to the provision of leaving certificate results, and the State Examinations Commission has being doing everything it can to ensure results are delivered as soon as possible. The intended date of Friday, 2…

I reiterate that, irrespective of the Deputy's views, we are still in a Covid environment. For that reason, appropriate provision had to be made for students, taking that environment into account. That is exactly what students, their families and the school communities wanted. That is equally true with regard to our achievement in previous years. It is remarkable that, throughout the Covid pandemic, we have found opportunities for students through the calculated grades process in 2020, the accredited grades process…

I salute the work of school communities, students and families, as well as the State Examinations Commission, in ensuring our students have this pathway forward. In March of this year, officials from the Department of Education and the State Examinations Commission briefed the further and higher education sector on challenges that could arise this summer, particularly with regard to the release of results. The further and higher education sector made provision in this regard last year and I have every confidence it…

My Department has had engagement from both St. Laurence College and its trustees, Le Chéile Schools Trust, in respect of the school property. The school and trustees have indicated their willingness to support the Department in meeting educational needs in the area. This is very positive and welcome. The school has committed to making both mainstream places and places for pupils with special educational needs available. This proactive and positive approach to providing for pupils with special educational needs must…

School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, more than 121,400 children, including in excess of 15,500 children with special educational needs, were transported daily to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. The cost in 2021 was more than €289 million. It is worth noting that in recent years the number of children using the scheme has increased by in excess of 8,000. During the previous academic year, ther…

I am conscious of one of the motivations of this review, since I come from a rural county and know about its importance and its potential. That motivation is to ensure that we are meeting the needs of students and families, that we are providing opportunities, and that we have a clear emphasis on value for money. We also want to ensure we are conscious of accessibility for students and of encouraging families to use buses and public transport as opposed to family cars. The Deputy referred to the cost of living. Jus…

I underline the importance of this service. I am under no illusions about it and appreciate that the Deputy is not either. A significant service is being provided. More than 121,400 students avail of it. We intend to maximise use of the service. In recent years, more than 8,000 more students have availed of the service. Our objective is to ensure the maximum number of students are facilitated to avail of the school transport system. We can see benefits all round for families, the environment and so much more. The r…

The State Examinations Commission, SEC, has responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations and has provided me with the following information.  Candidates experience many forms of trauma and adversity, such as serious illness and bereavement, around the time of the leaving certificate examinations and may be sitting examinations at a time that is not optimal for them.  For the 2022 leaving certificate examinations, the SEC is providing an extended scheme of deferred examinations wit…

To be clear, the SEC has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations. I am cognisant of the unique circumstances we find ourselves in this year, particularly due to Covid. I have been an advocate from the beginning that there should be a second sitting of the examination. I am mindful that students should have the maximum opportunity to showcase their talents. The second sitting of the examination allows for that, particularly if there is a case of Covid, a significant …