Written Answers Nos. 366-385
366. Deputy Mary Butler asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will address matters raised in correspondence in relation to the direct provision system (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49618/21]
View answerI note the correspondence the Deputy refers to is from a member of the public who references my plans to end direct provision and expresses concern about the welfare of applicants in the current system.
As the Deputy will be aware, I published a “White Paper to End Direct Provision and to establish a new International Protection Support Service”. The White Paper sets out a new Government policy to establish a new International Protection Support Service that I envision will be fully operational by December 2024. This new system will have human rights at its core and will help to ensure that all applicants are treated with dignity and respect. The International Protection Support Service Transition Team of this Department is progressing a detailed implementation plan for the new system and is working closely with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Housing Agency and the Local Authorities on developing the new Accommodation Model and wrap-around services for residents.
As we transition to the new system, in order to meet our legal obligations to provide accommodation and other support services for protection applicants, existing accommodation centres will continue to operate in the short to medium term; as such my Department currently utilises a mixture of state owned, commercial and temporary emergency accommodation centres.
As for the concerns expressed in the correspondence regarding the welfare of applicants in the current system, there is a clear graduated complaints procedure set out in the House Rules & Procedures Booklet for International Protection applicants. Complaints are made initially to the centre manager with a view to informal resolution. If the resident concerned is not satisfied with the outcome of their complaint, they may make a complaint to IPAS who will investigate the matter and take action as appropriate. In the event that a resident remains dissatisfied with how their complaint is dealt with, they have full access to the services of the Ombudsman and Ombudsman for Children.?
To provide further support to all residents, a confidential Freephone telephone support service exists. The Freephone helpline is operated by the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS). A complaint made to the JRS may be resolved without any IPAS intervention through mediation between the JRS team, the resident and whatever service their complaint relates to. Should a resident desire, a complaint made through this service may also be passed, in confidence, back to IPAS for investigation and resolution.
In addition to the existing complaints mechanisms available to residents, two new specialist teams were established in IPAS earlier this year to provide a greater focus on the individual needs of residents.
A new dedicated IPAS Customer Services Team is working to strengthen the existing resident complaints system and take a more proactive approach to dealing with residents' issues, actively engaging with residents through regular resident feedback clinics. As well as this increased in-person engagement with residents, the Customer Services Team will also be exploring the use of other feedback mechanisms such as customer focus groups in the months ahead.
The IPAS Resident Welfare Team is a new multi-disciplinary team that focuses on residents with more complex issues, including those with physical and mental health issues and persons identified through the IPAS Vulnerability Assessment Process as having special reception needs. Officials from Tusla, the HSE’s Social Inclusion Team and the Department of Education support this team. Additional Social Workers are currently being recruited to provide further support to the team.
My officials and I take the nutritional needs of residents very seriously. All of my Department’s international protection accommodation centres are contractually bound to provide menus that reasonably meet the dietary needs of the different ethnic groups accommodated at the centre and the reasonable prescribed dietary needs of any person accommodated at the centre. Menus must include a vegetarian option and all food products provided must have a traceability system that complies with food safety requirements. All accommodation centres that offer catered options must provide three meals per day and must have a range of snacks and non-alcoholic beverages readily available.
In addition, contractors must consult with residents and resident committees in the accommodation centres in relation to preferences for inclusion of specific foods on menus or any dietary requirement that they have and where possible this is facilitated. Arrangements are also be made to cater for any particular religious requirements of residents, such as observing Ramadan.
Concerning the conditions in the referenced accommodation centre, every centre is subject to regular unannounced inspections by both my officials in the IPAS and an independent inspectorate company (QTS Limited). These inspections are undertaken, twice yearly by QTS Limited and once yearly by my officials in IPAS. Inspections cover a wide range of issues including the quality of the food, fire safety and other health and safety issues. The particular centre has been inspected on three occasions since 2019. The reports are available on the gov.ie portal’s publications section atwww.gov.ie/en/publication/534c2-ipas-inspection-reports/#monaghan. HIQA will shortly take on the role of monitoring all centres against national standards.
Other matters such as the right to work, leave to remain, amnesty for frontline workers and deportation fall under the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Justice.
367. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will include the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography from Ireland’s report to the UN under the Convention on the Rights of the Child; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Ireland first committed to ratify this Optional Protocol in 2012; and the specific outstanding issues that need to be resolved in order for the State to fulfil this commitment. [49634/21]
View answerFollowing on from my earlier reply in September 2021, I would like to assure the Deputy that the Government continues to be strongly committed to the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
A number of significant pieces of legislation had to be passed to ensure that Ireland is in complete compliance with the obligations of the Optional Protocol. The enactment of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 and the Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017 constituted key steps on the pathway to the ratification of the Optional Protocol.
My Department subsequently made a submission to the Attorney General’s Office seeking confirmation as to whether Ireland was in a position to ratify the Protocol. The Attorney-General advised that while Ireland is largely compliant with the terms of the Protocol, there are some small outstanding issues that need to be resolved before the Protocol can be ratified. The main outstanding issues, which are within the remit of the Department of Justice, are to determine what, if any, legislative measures may be required to ensure that all of the offences covered by the Protocol can be prosecuted on an organised and transnational basis in line with Article 3.1 of the Protocol.
There is close engagement between officials in the Department of Justice and my Department while we await their determination of the legislative requirements. Once the Department of Justice has concluded this process, the next step will involve the development of measures that are necessary to enable ratification.
My Department co-ordinates the preparation of the next State Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in close collaboration with other Government Departments. The State report responds to the issues raised by the Committee in the List of Issues report which the Committee submitted to the State in November 2020. The Committee did not raise the issue of the non-ratification of the 2nd Optional Protocol in the List of Issues report. As a result the draft State Report that is currently available for public consultation does not include a response concerning the Second Optional Protocol. However, it has always been my intention to include an update on the ratification process in the final report to the UN Committee in February 2022.
368. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will intervene in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49677/21]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that I am not in a position to comment on these matters which are more appropriate for the attention of my Cabinet colleague, the Minister for Health.
369. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he plans to revaluate the ECCE capitation for childcare providers to reflect the increased cost of living and rent increases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49687/21]
View answerMy Department is currently reviewing the operation of the ECCE scheme, in preparation for putting the ECCE scheme on a statutory footing.
Funding requirements will be considered as part of the review.
In advance of the completion of the ECCE review, I will be introducing a new funding stream to support early learning and childcare providers, which will be in addition to the capitation payments received by providers who deliver the ECCE programme. I will announce details of the new funding stream following the publication of Budget 2022.
370. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number and value all procurement contracts that took place by way of negotiated procedure without prior publication in 2020 and to date in 2021; and the date, value and purpose of each negotiated procedure contract in tabular form. [49724/21]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the information she has requested is being compiled as a matter of priority and will be provided directly to her as soon as this work is complete.
371. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of disabled persons organisations as defined by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (details supplied) that are represented on the Disability Participation and Consultation Network. [49861/21]
View answerIreland ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2018. This marked an important milestone in a process to strengthen the rights of people with disabilities in Ireland that has gathered momentum since Ireland became a signatory to the Convention in 2007.
Our approach to meeting the obligations of the UNCRPD is one of progressive realisation, each year moving forward on key reforms, with the obligations arising from the Convention being met over time.
The UNCRPD requires State parties to actively involve people with disabilities in policy development (Article 4.3). It is important that the experiences and perspectives of people with disabilities are integrated into the development of policies and programmes so that they meet their needs effectively.
My Department has funded the development of a Disability Participation and Consultation Network to build capacity within the disability community so that people with disabilities and their representative organisations can participate fully. The Network was formed in late 2020.
The Disability Participation and Consultation Network has a total of 117 members. Members include disability organisations, disabled people's organisations, individuals with disabilities and family members and support groups. They represent a wide and diverse set of experiences of disabilities. The wide and varied membership ensures that there is a wide range of perspectives representing the diversity of people with disabilities.
The Network has an organising member and four grant funded members that were selected by an open process. The organising member is tasked with organisational and administrative duties for the Network and for providing a single point of contact for the work it is involved in. There are four grant funded members which are funded to support their involvement in the Network and in engaging and providing supports to the wider membership. While there is currently no central list of DPOs in Ireland, there are two organisations, of the four grant funded members, which state that they are DPOs. One of those organisations is itself a coalition that represents 7 organisations that identify specifically as DPOs.
This Network is an important initiative that will help us to realise both the spirit and the substance of the UNCRPD in Ireland.
372. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if the Disability Participation and Consultation Network meets the State’s obligations under Article 4(3) of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. [49862/21]
View answerIreland ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2018 and continues to progressively realise its obligations under the Convention. The Disability Participation and Consultation Network (DPCN) is an important initiative that will help us to realise both the spirit and the substance of the UNCRPD here in Ireland.
The UNCRPD requires State parties to involve people with disabilities in policy development. Article 4(3) of the UNCRPD specifically states that "In the development and implementation of legislation and policies to implement the present Convention, and in other decision-making processes concerning issues relating to persons with disabilities, States Parties shall closely consult with and actively involve persons with disabilities, including children with disabilities, through their representative organizations."
In progressively realising the obligations arising from Article 4(3) of the UNCRPD, my Department funded the development of the DPCN. It was formed in late 2020 to build capacity within the disability community so that people with disabilities and their representative organisations can participate fully in the development of policies and programmes.
One of the Disability Participation and Consultation Network’s first tasks has been to bring the voices of people with disabilities into consultations on Ireland’s first State Report to the UN on our progress in implementing the Convention. The Disability Participation and Consultation Network facilitated a consultation process amongst its membership to complete that task and I expect that they will continue to feed into policy-making across Departments.
It should be noted that the DPCN is not the only means by which my Department seeks to fulfil its CPRD obligations. My Department has the coordinating role in respect of the National Disability Inclusion Strategy, the steering group of which is chaired by my colleague Minister Anne Rabbitte T.D.. Incorporated into this structure is the Disability Stakeholder Group, which provides independent monitoring of the implementation of the Strategy and which is comprised of persons with disabilities, persons with expertise in relation to disability, and persons with lived experience of disability. My Department explicitly invited applications for persons representing Disabled Persons Organisations in the latest call for expressions of interest to join this Group.
The contribution of the DPCN and the DSG will be very important in supporting the process of fulfilling Ireland's obligations under UNCRPD.
373. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason a risk assessment has yet to be carried out in a case (details supplied); if he will raise the issue with Tusla as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49918/21]
View answerThe Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
374. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason the case of a child (details supplied) currently has no social worker appointed to it given that the previous worker on the case left; if he will raise this with Tusla as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49919/21]
View answerThe Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
375. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of alleged perpetrator risk assessments for sexual abuse required and pending in each area in tabular form; the length of time each assessment is pending; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49920/21]
View answerThe Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
376. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of children currently without a designated social worker; the length of time they have been waiting for same; the number of these that are in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49921/21]
View answer377. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of children without a designated social worker in each of the past three years in each area in tabular form; the length of time each was without a designated social worker; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49922/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 376 and 377 together.
The Deputy is referring to an operational matter for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. I have therefore referred the matter to Tusla, and asked that a direct response be provided to the Deputy.
378. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the timeline of the formulation of the national access plan for 2022-2026. [49411/21]
View answerWork on the development of the next National Access Plan (NAP) 2022 - 2026 is currently underway. The consultation process, which closed on 18th June 2021, invited all interested parties to make their views known on this matter and other matters related to access to higher education particularly for groups who are underrepresented in the higher education population. One-to-one stakeholder meetings around the specific target groups to be supported for the period of the next NAP are currently underway. Colleagues in my Department are working closely with the HEA on the development of the new Plan with the intention of publishing the plan in the coming months.
379. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will give consideration to reviewing the way the pandemic unemployment payment is assessed as income earned outside of term time for the purposes of the SUSI grant.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49887/21]
View answerThe Student Grant Scheme is a critical financial support for students participating in further and higher education. As in any statutory scheme, a core principle of the scheme is that there is consistency of approach and an equitable treatment for applicants as part of the means assessment process. All applications are assessed nationally with reference to the terms and conditions of the relevant student grant scheme. The terms and conditions of funding are applied impartially to all applicants.
The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for SUSI to determine. For the 2021/22 academic year, student grant applications will be assessed based on gross income from all sources for the reference period 1st January 2020 to 31st December 2020.
The Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Act 2020 establishes the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment as a social insurance benefit scheme separate from other social protection statutory schemes including the Supplementary Welfare Allowance and Jobseeker Allowance and Jobseeker Benefit schemes.
For student grant purposes the Covid-19 payment has been treated as reckonable income for the SUSI means assessment process since it was introduced in March 2020. This means that the Covid-19 payment is treated in a similar fashion to other Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection payments such as Jobseekers Benefit/Allowance, thus ensuring a consistency of approach and an equitable treatment of students and their families in the SUSI means assessment process.
However, a very important feature of the scheme that I would point to is the change of circumstances provision. If a student or party to their application experiences a change in circumstances that is not a temporary change and is likely to continue for the foreseeable future, they can apply to SUSI to have their application assessed under the change in circumstances provision of the relevant Student Grant Scheme. The income of all parties to the application will be assessed or reassessed on current income and applicants may also be asked to provide evidence of same.
Such a change in circumstances would clearly include no longer being in receipt of a pandemic unemployment payment. Students will no longer receive the PUP from early September, in line with normal circumstances where students do not qualify for unemployment payments while at college.
An applicant can request a review by contacting the SUSI Support Desk at 0761 087 874 or emailing support@susi.ie.
The change of circumstances provision is a well-established procedure and it can also operate at scale. For example, over 10,000 applicants declared a change of circumstance in the 2020/21 academic year and some 40% of these applications related to COVID-19. I am confident that the application of this provision will continue to allow the scheme to be flexible and responsive to people's circumstances.
Any student who believes his/her student grant application has been assessed incorrectly may also avail of the opportunities to appeal to SUSI and subsequently to the independent Student Grants Appeals Board.
Under Article 22(5)(b) of the Student Grant Scheme 2021, income from an applicant’s employment which represents holiday earnings outside of term time but within the reference period up to a maximum of €4,500 can be deducted from the total reckonable income assessed. This holiday earnings disregard under the Student Grant Scheme can only be applied to income from employment earned by the student in the manner described. The holiday earnings disregard pertains specifically to income from employment only; there is no provision to offset this disregard against any other sources of income, such as a social welfare payment.
The Deputy will be aware that restrictions were eased during the summer months and the Christmas period which enabled many students to return to work. Those students, who engaged in work during non-term times when restrictions were eased in 2020, can avail of the holiday earnings provision and have that income excluded from their reckonable income up to the value of €4,500 for the 2021/22 grant scheme.
380. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will allow persons who become disabled after finishing their degree, masters or PhD, to access a SUSI grant again in order to allow them to change to careers that are more in keeping with their new medical situation and in order to encourage more people who are disabled to return to third-level education and the workforce; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49168/21]
View answerProgression is a key tenet of the Student Grant Scheme and section 2 of the Student Support Act 2011 defines progression as "the process by which learners may transfer from one course to another course where the award that may be made on the successful completion of the second mentioned course is of a higher level..."
Generally speaking, a grant will not be paid to a student for a repeat period of study on the same course, or for a different course at the same level, irrespective of whether or not a grant was paid previously. However, once an equivalent period of study has been completed on the new course, the student may be eligible for student grant assistance for the remainder of the course.
Notwithstanding this, under Article 15(8) of the Student Grant Scheme 2021, the awarding authority SUSI has discretion to award a grant for a repeat period of study in exceptional circumstances, such as serious certified illness, which impacted on a student completing a particular period of study or undertaking exams in line with guidelines drawn up by the Minister.
SUSI treats each application for repeat funding on a case-by-case basis, and it is it is a matter for the individual student to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the awarding authority that there were exceptional circumstances.
Apart from the Student Grant Scheme, the Fund for Students with Disabilities (FSD) supports participation by students with a disability in further and higher education. The FSD is one of the main funding sources supporting participation by students with disabilities in approved further and higher education courses in Ireland. It also supports students from Ireland to study on approved courses in Northern Ireland, the UK and other EU countries. The actual level of support to be provided to individual students is decided by each institution who carry out a needs assessment to determine the types of supports and accommodations needed. Further information on the Fund is available at www.studentfinance.ie or from the Access Office of any higher education institution.
The SAF also assists students in a sensitive and compassionate manner, who might otherwise be unable to continue their third level studies due to their financial circumstances. Institutions have the autonomy to maximise the flexibility in the Student Assistance Fund to enable HEIs to support students during the COVID-19 situation. Details of this fund are available from the Access Office in the third level institution attended. This fund is administered on a confidential, discretionary basis.
381. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science further to Parliamentary Question No. 545 of 28 September 2021, if he will provide further detail and an explanation for the increase in the number of cases of overpayments discovered under the reason, information omitted from application; the breakdown of the type of information omitted; the number of discoveries of information omitted from application in each month throughout the academic year 2020-2021, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49192/21]
View answerThe Student Grant Scheme is administered by the centralised national grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland), a business unit of CDETB (City of Dublin Education and Training Board), on behalf of the Department. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter for SUSI to determine.
As part of SUSI’s internal processes, Post Assessment Quality Reviews are carried out on applications both for the current academic year and all prior academic years and any underpayments or overpayments are addressed.
In academic year 2020/21, it was found that 912 students omitted information from their application form which resulted in them receiving a payment for which they were not eligible. The majority of these applicants were renewal applicants. The renewal application form asks applicants a number of questions in relation to whether or not there have been any changes to their circumstances since their previous application including course or college details and family and income details. The applicants indicated no change to their circumstances however subsequently were found to have had a change which affected their eligibility for funding in line with the Student Support Scheme 2020.
Please see below breakdown of information omitted from the application form which led to the overpayment and the month in which they were identified:
|
Information omitted from application form |
Oct-20 |
Nov-20 |
Dec-20 |
Jan-21 |
Feb-21 |
Mar-21 |
Apr-21 |
Total |
|
Income details |
166 |
562 |
152 |
6 |
2 |
3 |
891 |
|
|
Course details |
1 |
1 |
4 |
6 |
||||
|
BTEA/VTOS information |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
|||
|
Details of previous education |
2 |
5 |
7 |
|||||
|
Information on withdrawal date |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|||||
|
Change of adjacency details |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Total |
169 |
566 |
162 |
8 |
3 |
4 |
0 |
912 |
382. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science further to Parliamentary Question No. 545 of 28 of September 2021, if he will provide further detail and an explanation for the increase in the number of cases of overpayments discovered under the reason eligibility; the breakdown of the reasons students were deemed ineligible in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49193/21]
View answerThe Student Grant Scheme is administered by the centralised national grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland), a business unit of CDETB (City of Dublin Education and Training Board), on behalf of the Department. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter for SUSI to determine.
As part of SUSI’s internal processes, Post Assessment Quality Reviews are carried out on applications both for the current academic year and all prior academic years and any underpayments or overpayments are addressed.
In academic year 2020/21, it was found that 912 students omitted information from their application form which resulted in them receiving a payment for which they were not eligible. The majority of these applicants were renewal applicants. The renewal application form asks applicants a number of questions in relation to whether or not there have been any changes to their circumstances since their previous application including course or college details and family and income details. The applicants indicated no change to their circumstances however subsequently were found to have had a change which affected their eligibility for funding in line with the Student Support Scheme 2020.
Please see below breakdown of information omitted from the application form which led to the overpayment and the month in which they were identified:
|
Information omitted from application form |
Oct-20 |
Nov-20 |
Dec-20 |
Jan-21 |
Feb-21 |
Mar-21 |
Apr-21 |
Total |
|
Income details |
166 |
562 |
152 |
6 |
2 |
3 |
891 |
|
|
Course details |
1 |
1 |
4 |
6 |
||||
|
BTEA/VTOS information |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
|||
|
Details of previous education |
2 |
5 |
7 |
|||||
|
Information on withdrawal date |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|||||
|
Change of adjacency details |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Total |
169 |
566 |
162 |
8 |
3 |
4 |
0 |
912 |
383. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if his Department plans to undertake a universal design review of all further education and higher education institutions in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49199/21]
View answerIn higher education, the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning has been working to support higher education institutions in embedding universal design for learning (UDL) principles in teaching and learning practices. Student Success is one of the Forum’s priority areas, and under this strand a number of projects focusing on universal design for learning have been funded to implement UDL in specific curricula in higher education institutions.
The National Forum have incorporated a strong link to universal design in the new Seven Cs for Embedding Student Success: A Toolkit for Higher Education Institutions, which was launched in recent days. Full details available at studentsuccess.teachingandlearning.ie/ .
To build staff capacity in UDL, a Digital Badge for UDL has been developed by Ahead and UCD for the National Forum. Last year, 650 participants took part in the Open Course developed through this initiative. The course is currently being delivered with over 1,200 participants from FET and HE. The National Forum is also currently working with UCD and AHEAD on the possible development of another course Universal Design of Student Services with an aim for it to be delivered in Autumn of 2022. A number of professional development seminars on the theme of UDL have also been delivered with support from the National Forum.
The next National Access Plan is currently in development following an extensive consultation process earlier this year. Inclusivity will be central to this Plan and the application of UDL principles in teaching and learning will be considered within this.
In further education, SOLAS, Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), and the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) across the country have progressed a series of actions to support the goal of Fostering Inclusion through the development and roll-out of a series of good practice guidelines to promote inclusion throughout FET. This included the development and publication of a conceptual framework for Universal Design for Learning (UDL) for the FET Sector and a guide on UDL for practitioners. A UDL approach aims to reduce obstacles to learning by taking into account the needs of learners such as their age or the levels of their ability. This will help all learners in FET, whatever their particular needs, and will make FET as widely accessible as possible .
384. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the extent to which projects that fall within the aegis of his Department and are within the revised National Development Plan are at an advanced stage at present or are in course thereof; the extent to which preliminary work has taken place or on-site works are in hand or proposed; the expected delivery date of each; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49255/21]
View answerThere are currently 74 projects at various stages of the project lifecycle across the further and higher education sectors, as set out in the table below.
While a small number of further education projects are excepted to be completed by the end of 2021 the majority of projects are due to be completed across 2022 and 2023.
|
Lifecycle Stage |
Higher Education SectorNo. of Projects |
Further Education SectorNo. of Projects |
|
Design |
8 |
22 |
|
Procurement |
18 |
4 |
|
Contract Stage |
1 |
1 |
|
Implementation |
12 |
8 |
|
Totals |
39 |
35 |
385. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the breakdown of the proposed development of further educational and training colleges of the future specifically in relation to campuses and colleges across Dublin city and county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49274/21]
View answerThe new National Development Plan (NDP) provides for a step up in capital funding for the further education and training (FET) sector. It is envisaged that expenditure will increase from less than €20m last year to approximately €100m by 2025. While the previous NDP introduced, for the first time, a dedicated capital envelope for the FET sector, the new NDP will now enable a transition to a more ambitious and strategic approach to the development of FET infrastructure.
The new NDP will support the development of FET Colleges of the Future, to consolidate high quality provision in key locations, while retaining a strong community-based presence.
Significant planning work and capacity development is now required to underpin this major programme of FET investment. Specific projects will be identified following review and appraisal in line with the requirements of the Public Spending Code.
