Emer Currie
Question:416. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth to consider allocating a home school community liaison teacher for all special schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65908/25]
View answerHome Schooling
Questions (416, 417)
Emer Currie
Question:417. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth the estimated cost of allocating a home school community liaison teacher for all special schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65909/25]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 416 and 417 together.
The Home School Community Liaison (HSCL) scheme is one of the key supports provided by my Department as part of the overall DEIS programme. It is managed by Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) and it seeks to promote partnership between parents, teachers and community family support services, with a view to supporting improved attendance, participation and retention.
All DEIS urban primary schools and all DEIS post-primary schools are included in the HSCL scheme, which currently serves 682 DEIS schools, catering for approximately 207,000 children and young people. The scheme is delivered by 528 full-time HSCL coordinators assigned to HSCL duties either in individual schools or in clusters of schools.
HSCL coordinators are released from teaching duties, for a maximum of five years, in order to work intensively with and support parents/guardians. The overarching goal of the HSCL coordinator is to improve educational outcomes for children through their work with the key adults in the child’s life. Over €36 million is spent annually on the pay costs of HSCL coordinators.
Budget 2026 allocates an additional €16 million to the DEIS programme in 2026, rising to €48 million in 2027, to support the implementation of the new DEIS Strategy and introduce the DEIS Plus scheme, which will commence in 2026.
In addition to the above, a pilot project to support Traveller and Roma pupils, is in operation in 4 locations with 1 HSCL coordinator assigned in each location and a further 10 HSCL coordinators support attendance, participation and retention among Traveller and Roma students, across 14 non-DEIS post-primary schools.
In 2026, over €3 billion will be spent supporting children with special educational needs. It will ensure that specialist capacity continues to grow by providing 3,000 specialist places. The majority of these places will be available in special classes within mainstream schools. It will increase our special educational posts by 860 special education teacher and over 1,700 special needs assistant (SNA) posts. This will mean we will have over 46,500 professionals dedicated to supporting students with special educational needs in our schools.
All special schools now benefit from the appointment of administrative deputy principals. These posts are making a real difference in schools in terms of assisting with leadership and management functions and supporting learning, parental and community engagement.? The allocation of 100 post-primary teaching posts to ensure a greater range of the national curriculum subjects can be taught to improve student progression and transition.
At the end of the 2024/25 school year there were 3,336 special classes in mainstream schools and 134 special schools in operation. The 134 special schools include 124 special schools supported by the National Council for Special Education, 7 hospital schools and 3 schools attached to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services units. Allocating a HSCL coordinator to all 134 special schools would cost in the region of €10.2 million per annum.
Question No. 417 answered with Question No. 416.
School Staff
Questions (418)
Emer Currie
Question:418. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth to consider changing principals allowance to reflect the number of staff managed for special schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65910/25]
View answerWritten answers
I refer to your recent correspondence in relation to changing Principals allowance in special schools to reflect the number of staff managed .
Pay and workplace reform measures for all public servants, including Principals, have been governed by a framework of public service pay agreements for a number of years. The current pay agreement, Public Service Agreement 2024-2026 is in place until June 2026.
Any further amendments to Teacher Terms and Conditions, including pay and other terms and conditions, can only be achieved through engagement and collective bargaining agreements between the Government and the public service unions or through the Teachers Conciliation Council (TCC) forum in the Department of Education.
The TCC is the recognised forum for dealing with matters relating to the pay and conditions of service for teachers paid from monies provided by the Oireachtas. It is independently chaired by an official of the Workplace Relations Commission and comprised of representatives from the Department of Education, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Teacher Unions and School Management Bodies.
It is open to the relevant parties to the TCC to seek changes to terms and conditions under this process and any such proposals would need to be considered in detail by the Council.
School Staff
Questions (419)
Emer Currie
Question:419. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth the estimated cost of changing principals allowance to reflect the number of staff managed for special schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65911/25]
View answerWritten answers
My Department continue to review policy and introduce new initiatives to ensure that all students are provided an appropriate education and are supported to reach their full potential and achieve their educational goals.
The current pay agreement, Public Service Agreement (PSA) 2024-2026, contains a local bargaining provision under which employers and trade unions/associations may negotiate additional changes in rates of pay and/or conditions of employment.
As a Principals allowance is one of the matters that may come under consideration under the local bargaining provision of the PSA 2024-2026 and as such matters under industrial relations processes are confidential to the parties it would not be appropriate for me to make any further comment while it remains under consideration.
School Management
Questions (420)
Emer Currie
Question:420. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth to consider establishing an in-school management team appropriate to the size of a school’s staff (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65912/25]
View answerWritten answers
I recognise the key role school leadership in improving educational outcomes by creating a positive school climate and environment as well as motivating and empowering educators and learners within their school communities.
The Department has committed to annually revising the allocation of Posts of Responsibility to take into account retirements during the school year which has ensured that the current level of Posts of Responsibility (POR’s) are maintained in the school system. New POR threshold tables are produced each year to distribute these PORs equitably across all school. Currently one in three teachers hold a promotional post within our schools.
Recent Budgets have provided for an additional 1000 posts of responsibility at both primary level and post-primary level. 500 AP II posts were allocated to primary schools in the 2024/25 school year. For the 2025/26 school year, the equivalent of 500 AP II posts is being distributed as 110 AP I and 251 AP II for the purposes of fully restoring all PORs in primary schools.
Any further improvement would have to be considered in the context of the overall budgetary process.
School Funding
Questions (421)
Cathal Crowe
Question:421. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Education and Youth if schools that were unsuccessful in obtaining climate action summer works scheme funding in the current round will be automatically considered in the next round; the date she expects to be in a position to announce those successful in the next round; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65922/25]
View answerWritten answers
The purpose of the Climate Action Summer Works Scheme (CASWS) is to enable individual school authorities to undertake small-scale building works on a devolved basis that, ideally, can be carried out during the summer months or at other times that avoid disrupting the operation of the school. The CASWS operates on a multi-annual basis across a number of categories of works.
It is envisaged that approvals in any given year will involve a spread of categories rather than the traditional single category at a time. This is aimed at managing market capacity and maximising value for money opportunities for school authorities.
The CASWS will operate on a multi-annual basis. In November 2025, the Minister announced the first tranche of approvals under the new Climate Action Summer Works Scheme. 297 projects were approved to proceed and involve primary, post primary and special schools, along with projects in all counties and across all categories of works. The investment in the first tranche of applications is in the region of €90m.
Given that funding is limited in any particular year it is necessary to prioritise applications. Under the new climate action summer works scheme which operates on a multi annual basis, like previous summer works schemes, applications from schools that are not reached for funding or market prioritisation reasons in 2026 will qualify to be assessed for purposes of the funding available for climate action summer works in subsequent years.
It is anticipated that the next tranche of approvals will be in the latter half of 2026.
Full details of the of the announcement and the list of schools approved in the first tranche, the Circular (0029/2025) for the scheme and guidance documents for schools can be found at the below link; www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/services/summer-works-scheme/.
School Funding
Questions (422)
Cathal Crowe
Question:422. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Education and Youth the funding streams open to schools that had applications submitted for the climate action summer works scheme but were not included in the 2026 allocation and require works to be carried out; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65923/25]
View answerWritten answers
The purpose of the Climate Action Summer Works Scheme (CASWS) is to enable individual school authorities to undertake small-scale building works on a devolved basis that, ideally, can be carried out during the summer months or at other times that avoid disrupting the operation of the school. The CASWS operates on a multi-annual basis across a number of categories of works.
It is envisaged that approvals in any given year will involve a spread of categories rather than the traditional single category at a time. This is aimed at managing market capacity and maximising value for money opportunities for school authorities.
The CASWS will operate on a multi-annual basis. In November 2025, the Minister announced the first tranche of approvals under the new Climate Action Summer Works Scheme. 297 projects were approved to proceed and involve primary, post primary and special schools, along with projects in all counties and across all categories of works. The investment in the first tranche of applications is in the region of €90m.
Given that funding is limited in any particular year it is necessary to prioritise applications. Under the new climate action summer works scheme which operates on a multi annual basis, like previous summer works schemes, applications from schools that are not reached for funding or market prioritisation reasons in 2026 will qualify to be assessed for purposes of the funding available for climate action summer works in subsequent years.
Full details of the of the announcement and the list of schools approved in the first tranche, the Circular (0029/2025) for the scheme and guidance documents for schools can be found at the below link; www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/services/summer-works-scheme/.
It is anticipated that the next tranche of approvals under the Climate Action Summer Works Scheme will be announced in the latter half of 2026. However, if a school authority considers that the works that need to be carried out fall under the scope of the Emergency Works Scheme they may apply via the Esinet Portal.
School Funding
Questions (423)
Joanna Byrne
Question:423. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of schools in County Louth that have sought assistance from the Financial Support Service Unit for each of the years 2020 to 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65935/25]
View answerWritten answers
The table below lists the schools that have requested financial assistance from the Financial Support Service Unit (FSSU) for the years 2020 to 2025 for Co. Louth.
|
Schools seeking financial assistance in Co. Louth referred to the FSSU |
|
|
|
School Year |
Number of schools referred |
Number of schools that received an advance in Capitation grant funding |
|
2020/21 |
0 |
0 |
|
2021/22 |
0 |
0 |
|
2022/23 |
0 |
0 |
|
2023/24 |
0 |
0 |
|
2024/25 |
1 |
0 |
|
2025 (to date) |
1 |
0 |
Schools in financial difficulty are encouraged to contact my Department for advice and support. The Department is committed to offering all available and appropriate supports to schools, which may include an advance in capitation grant funding or other measures.
The Department is constantly engaging with a number of schools in this respect. Schools that have contacted the Department have been referred to the FSSU.
The Financial Support Services Unit (FSSU), funded by the Department, is an important source of advice and support to schools on financial matters, including budgeting and cashflow management. Contact details for FSSU can be found on www.fssu.ie.
Educational Disadvantage
Questions (424)
Ryan O'Meara
Question:424. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Education and Youth to consider reclassifying the DEIS status of a school (details supplied) from DEIS Band 2 to DEIS Band 1, given the increased educational and social need of the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65936/25]
View answerWritten answers
Tackling education disadvantage is a key priority for the Minister for Education and Youth. Currently, the DEIS programme supports almost 1,200 primary and post-primary schools reaching approximately 260,000 students, with an annual investment of €180 million. Budget 2026 allocates an additional €16 million in 2026, rising to €48 million in 2027, to support the implementation of the new DEIS Strategy and introduce the DEIS Plus scheme, which will commence in 2026.
The DEIS programme is targeted at schools with the highest levels of concentrated disadvantage. Schools that were included in the expansion of the programme in 2022 were those with the highest levels of concentrated disadvantage as identified through the refined DEIS identification model. Schools were not required to apply for inclusion in the DEIS programme, and the model was applied fairly and equally to all schools. A detailed paper on the refined DEIS identification model is available on gov.ie.
Schools were identified for inclusion in the DEIS programme based on their standardised disadvantage score. Schools with the highest levels of concentrated disadvantage scores are included in the DEIS programme, with those urban primary schools having the very highest levels of disadvantage being assigned Urban Band 1.
The Minister is committed to narrowing the performance gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools and introducing innovative solutions to address disadvantage. A new DEIS Strategy will be published in early 2026. The new DEIS Strategy will focus on improving the opportunities and achievement levels of children at risk of educational disadvantage, developing more innovative approaches to tackling educational disadvantage, and working towards a more flexible system of supports to ensure that a school can receive the right support at the right time.
Any future changes to the identification model and overall allocation of resources will be considered within the context of the new DEIS Strategy.
Educational Disadvantage
Questions (425)
Ryan O'Meara
Question:425. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Education and Youth when schools can apply for reclassification of their DEIS status; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65937/25]
View answerWritten answers
Tackling education disadvantage and helping students reach their full potential is a key priority for the Minister for Education and Youth. The DEIS programme is a key policy initiative of Government to address concentrated educational disadvantage at school level. It is a goal of this Government to reduce educational disadvantage and promote equity across Irish schools, focusing particularly on vulnerable groups including children from lower socio-economic backgrounds, children living in homelessness, Travellers, and Roma and migrant communities.
The DEIS programme is targeted at schools with the highest levels of concentrated disadvantage. The Minister is determined to close the performance gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools and introduce more innovative solutions to tackle disadvantage. A new DEIS Strategy will be published before the end of the year. This Strategy will focus on improving the opportunities and achievement levels of children at risk of educational disadvantage, developing more innovative approaches to tackling educational disadvantage, and working towards a more flexible system of support to ensure that a school can receive the right support at the right time.
As was the case with the current DEIS programme, schools will not be required to apply for inclusion in the new DEIS programme and the process will be evidence informed based on current data. Overall allocation of resources will be considered within the context of the new DEIS Strategy and the availability of resources.
Special Educational Needs
Questions (426)
Ryan O'Meara
Question:426. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Education and Youth to consider increasing the number of posts of responsibility in a special school, bearing in mind that special schools generally have a large staff of SNAs and ancillary staff; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65938/25]
View answerWritten answers
My Department continue to review policy and introduce new initiatives to ensure that all students are provided an appropriate education and are supported to reach their full potential and achieve their educational goals.
The current pay agreement, Public Service Agreement (PSA) 2024-2026, contains a local bargaining provision under which employers and trade unions/associations may negotiate additional changes in rates of pay and/or conditions of employment.
As increasing the number of posts of responsibility is one of the matters that may come under consideration under the local bargaining provision of the PSA 2024-2026 and as such matters under industrial relations processes are confidential to the parties it would not be appropriate for me to make any further comment while it remains under consideration.
Any further amendments to Teacher Terms and Conditions, including pay and other terms and conditions, can only be achieved through engagement and collective bargaining agreements between the Government and the public service unions or through the Teachers Conciliation Council (TCC) forum in the Department of Education.
The TCC is the recognised forum for dealing with matters relating to the pay and conditions of service for teachers paid from monies provided by the Oireachtas. It is independently chaired by an official of the Workplace Relations Commission and comprised of representatives from the Department of Education, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Teacher Unions and School Management Bodies.
It is open to the relevant parties to the TCC to seek changes to terms and conditions under this process and any such proposals would need to be considered in detail by the Council.
School Staff
Questions (427)
Michael Cahill
Question:427. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education and Youth to roll out the new administrative executive roles scheme for schools as a pilot scheme in County Kerry to support and strengthen schools there, to help principals and teachers across the county, reduce the huge admin burden; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65939/25]
View answerWritten answers
The Programme for Government includes commitments to trial administrative supports and review leadership supports. To deliver on the commitments in the Programme for Government, my department has implemented an Action Research Project to trial new administrative supports and arrangements for principals and boards of management to reduce the non-educational aspect of their workloads. These new posts have the working title of Administrative Executives and are being trialed in six schools – three primary and three post primary.
My officials have engaged with education stakeholders from primary and post-primary on the principles, design and practicalities of the trial. This stakeholder engagement will continue throughout the trial. As part of the project design, the selection of schools was guided by a broad set of considerations. The objective was to capture, to the extent possible, a range of school types in terms of size, governance structures, DEIS status, and special class provision. Six schools were selected in Cork, Dublin, Longford, Roscommon and Galway.
Independent evaluators have been appointed to establish the impact and feasibility of such roles and test job specifications. The evaluation will also identify the impact of the posts on school leadership teams. The evaluation will also aid in identifying what external administrative supports are required that schools could draw on.
In addition to the Action Research Project on Administrative Executives, the Programme for Government provides for a number of measures to support small schools including trialing new administrative supports. The Government is very aware that small schools are an important part of the life of local communities. The Small Schools Project has two trial administrative support roles in place, in both the Gort and Donegal Clusters, to ease the administrative burden on teaching principals.
This work will build on and complement the work being undertaken to look at the issue of school leadership and governance both at primary and post-primary level, to better support all school leaders and school communities.
Educational Disadvantage
Questions (428, 431, 432, 433)
Joanna Byrne
Question:428. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the date for the publishing of the proposed new DEIS Plan; and when her Department intend to communicate with school principals at existing DEIS schools in County Louth regarding the proposed DEIS plus part of this plan. [65943/25]
View answerJoanna Byrne
Question:431. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of additional people the proposed DEIS Plus plan will support in County Louth. [65946/25]
View answerJoanna Byrne
Question:432. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the way in which the funding announced in Budget 2026 for the introduction of the DEIS Plus scheme will be allocated to schools in County Louth; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65947/25]
View answerJoanna Byrne
Question:433. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the plans in place to ensure that proposed DEIS Plus funding and resources are made available to schools in County Louth before the end of the current academic school year allowing schools sufficient time to plan and prepare ahead of the proposed September 2026 rollout; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65948/25]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 428, 431, 432 and 433 together.
Tackling educational disadvantage and helping students reach their full potential is a key priority for me as the Minister for Education and Youth and for Government. Currently, the DEIS programme supports almost 1,200 primary and post-primary schools, reaching approximately 260,000 students, with an annual investment of over €180 million. Budget 2026 allocates an additional €16 million in 2026, rising to €48 million in 2027, to support the implementation of the new DEIS Strategy and introduce the DEIS Plus scheme, which will commence in 2026.
A new DEIS Strategy, which will include a DEIS Plus scheme will be published in early 2026. This strategy will focus on improving the opportunities and achievement levels of children at risk of educational disadvantage, developing more innovative approaches to tackling education disadvantage, and working towards a more flexible system of supports to ensure that a school can receive the right support at the right time.
The DEIS Plus scheme will provide additional support to schools with the highest levels of need, in line with the Government’s commitment. It will target a cohort of schools with high concentrations of children and young people experiencing intergenerational disadvantage where there is a significant gap in outcomes and there are barriers to those children and young people achieving their potential.
The process to identify schools for inclusion in DEIS Plus will be evidence-informed, using available data be evidence-informed, using available data.
The details of the DEIS Plus scheme are currently being finalised within an overall programme of work to tackle educational disadvantage and will be outlined in the new DEIS Strategy. Future allocation of overall resources will be considered within the context of the new DEIS Strategy and the availability of resources.
Educational Disadvantage
Questions (429, 430)
Joanna Byrne
Question:429. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the form of collaboration that took place with principals of existing DEIS schools in County Louth regarding the development of the proposed DEIS plus scheme. [65944/25]
View answerJoanna Byrne
Question:430. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Youth the form of engagement or collaboration that took place with home school community liaison workers, school completion programme workers, and children and young people from schools in County Louth in line with her stated intention to "form a student-centred design approach" for the proposed DEIS plus scheme. [65945/25]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 429 and 430 together.
Tackling educational disadvantage and helping students reach their full potential is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth. Currently, the DEIS programme supports almost 1,200 primary and post-primary schools, reaching approximately 260,000 students, with an annual investment of over €180 million. Budget 2026 allocates an additional €16 million in 2026, rising to €48 million in 2027, to support the implementation of the new DEIS Strategy and introduce the DEIS Plus scheme, which will commence in 2026.
In 2024, the Social Inclusion Unit in my Department carried out consultation workshops, focus groups and other engagements with key education stakeholders. These enabled direct engagement between policymakers and education stakeholders and were an opportunity for stakeholders to contribute to the development of the new DEIS Strategy and DEIS Plus scheme. Principals of schools in the DEIS programme in County Louth were involved in these consultations.
The workshops gathered detailed insights from teachers, school leaders, students, young people and other education experts on how resources are being used in schools. These insights informed the development of the new DEIS Strategy and DEIS Plus scheme and helped translate the OECD’s review on resourcing in schools to tackle education disadvantage recommendations into practical actions that can improve support for schools and students.
To further inform the development of the DEIS Plus scheme, a design advisory group was established including school principals, Home School Community Liaison officers, and School Completion Programme coordinators - professionals who work directly with children experiencing high levels of disadvantage.
The DEIS Plus scheme will provide additional support to schools with the highest levels of need, in line with the Programme for Government commitment. It will target a cohort of schools with the highest concentrations of children and young people experiencing intergenerational disadvantage where there is a significant gap in outcomes and there are barriers to those children and young people achieving their potential.
The process to identify schools for inclusion in DEIS Plus will be evidence-informed, using available data. The details of the DEIS Plus scheme are currently being finalised within an overall programme of work to tackle educational disadvantage and will be outlined in the new DEIS Strategy, which I intend to publish in early 2026.
Future allocation of overall resources will be considered within the context of the new DEIS Strategy and the availability of resources.
Question No. 430 answered with Question No. 429.
Question No. 431 answered with Question No. 428.
Question No. 432 answered with Question No. 428.
Question No. 433 answered with Question No. 428.