Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 June 2026
760. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the total funding allocated to the July provision programme for 2026; whether this represents a reduction compared to 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41587/26]
View answer761. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether an assessment has been carried out on the impact of any reduction in July provision supports on children with additional educational needs and their families; and if she will provide details of same. [41588/26]
View answer762. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Youth the steps being taken to ensure that all eligible children can access July provision programmes in 2026, particularly given reported difficulties in securing places or staffing. [41589/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 760 to 762, inclusive, together.
Details of the 2026 Summer Programme were communicated to all schools on the 6th May 2026. While it is acknowledged that details of the Summer Programme are typically announced earlier, the finalisation of arrangements for the 2026 programme was delayed pending confirmation that the Department of Education and Youth would receive the additional funding required to support all aspects of education.
All schools have been offered the opportunity to run a school-based programme for children with the most complex special educational needs and those at risk of educational disadvantage.
Where a school does not intend to run a school-based programme or there is no place on the programme for an eligible child, schools were invited to make an application for the home-based programme.
The application portals for both the school-based and the home-based programmes were open in parallel from the 6th May to the 15th May to reflect a shorter timeframe. Having listened to the concerns of schools who wanted to apply after the deadline and to ensure that families are not left without support, the application portals were reopened from 2nd June to the 5th June inclusive.
In addition to there being no change in the eligibility criteria and the terms and conditions of the Summer Programme from previous years, there has also been no reduction in funding for the Summer Programme in primary, post-primary or special schools in terms of capitation and payroll costs.
The following table provides the funding allocated for the Summer Programme for 2025 and 2026:
|
Year |
Budget for Summer Programme |
|
2025 |
€62 million |
|
2026 |
€62 million |
