Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 June 2026
293. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Education and Youth the total cost for the national conversation on education; to provide a breakdown of the costs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46736/26]
View answerThe National Conversation was an opportunity for everyone in Ireland with an interest in education to have their say on the future of education and was launched on 14th January 2026. The Conversation was devised by my officials to surface the priorities, concerns, and aspirations of individuals across Ireland regarding the current and future education system with the outcomes of the Conversation being used to help inform the agenda for the Convention on Education.
The National Conversation was made up of 3 elements:
National Survey with Submissions,
School Community Engagements (SCE),
Regional Events.
The Survey and Submissions process ran from 14th January to the 28th February and received over 42,000 responses including 500 written submissions. The survey was designed and hosted by my officials.
It was promoted in the following ways:
across the departments social media assets,
by school principals amongst their pupils, parents and staff bodies,
by stakeholder organisations amongst their membership,
by Department of Social Protection sending a notification to parents in receipt of child benefit who had signed up to receive notifications electronically.
The School Community Engagements (SCE) were hosted by the department in conjunction with the Education Support Centre network. School community engagements involved teachers, SNAs, parents and students engaging with each other and the department in an open manner, to identify their priorities for the education system. The 10 SCEs held around the country saw 171 adults and 256 children and young people taking part. My officials received training in facilitation techniques in advance of these events and so designed and facilitated these sessions themselves
The Regional consultations facilitated discussion on the main themes and issues that had emerged from the school community engagement events and other national conversation elements. Attendees were asked to give their views on the extent to which these topics offered scope for the most significant issues to be discussed in the Convention on Education in so far as they relate to the future of education. Approximately 190 representatives from local and community organisations took part across 4 Regional events. These were promoted by the local school and ETBs involved who also bore the costs of hosting these events.
Given the large-scale consultation that the National Conversation represented, its final cost of €98,984.02 represents excellent value for money. The initiative achieved extensive geographic coverage, engaging participants from every county, thereby ensuring that a wide diversity of regional perspectives and experiences were captured. It also successfully included participants from across a wide range of groupings in society, reflecting a broad spectrum of social, economic and community voices. This breadth of participation, combined with the relatively modest overall cost, underscores the efficiency and effectiveness of the process in delivering a truly inclusive national dialogue
Please see attached the breakdown of costs incurred in relation to the 3 elements of the National Conversation.
|
National Conversation Costs |
|
|
Artwork/Logo |
€14,587.80 |
|
Launch Event |
€6,441.40 |
|
School Community Engagements (Venue/Catering) |
€8,775.91 |
|
SCE Staff Training |
€3,000.00 |
|
Analysis of Conversation Outcomes |
€50,000.00 |
|
Facilitation service for Regional Event |
€14,950.00 |
|
Translation Services |
€1,228.91 |
|
Total |
€98,984.02 |
