Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 January 2026
1259. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of education welfare officers employed in Dublin south central; if that constitutes a full complement of staff; the number of vacancies, if any; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2208/26]
View answerTusla Education Support Service (TESS), which includes the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS), is under the remit of my department since 2021.
The primary role of the EWS is to ensure that every child either attends school regularly or otherwise receives a certain minimum education. Educational welfare officers (EWOs) are based throughout the country and work with children, young people and their families who are experiencing difficulty with school attendance. This is done through, home visits, educational welfare conferences and collaboratively working with different agencies. The main priority of the work is around the educational welfare of children and young people and to ensure that concerns around attendance are addressed before attendance becomes a crisis issue.
The Dublin South Central Electoral District (ED) is served by EWOs from two TESS regions, Dublin/Mid- Leinster and South East. I can advise the Deputy that there are eight fulltime EWO positions in the Dublin South Central ED. Currently, two of these positions are vacant and there is a recruitment campaign ongoing to fill these EWO positions.
