Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
134. Deputy Paula Butterly asked the Minister for Education and Youth to provide an update on the publishing of the new DEIS strategy; and outline the planned process for implementing the DEIS Plus scheme. [9918/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraTackling educational disadvantage and supporting students to reach their full potential in life is a key priority for the Minister for Education and Youth. The DEIS programme is a key policy of government to tackle concentrated educational disadvantage at school level.
The department is investing over €180 million annually to provide additional?supports?to almost 1,200 schools in the DEIS programme. Budget 2026 allocates an additional €16.5 million in 2026, rising to €48 million in 2027, to support the implementation of a new DEIS Strategy and introduce a new DEIS Plus scheme, commencing in 2026.
The Minister for Education is committed to addressing the performance gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools and introducing more innovative solutions to tackle educational disadvantage. The new DEIS Strategy to 2035 will be published in quarter 1, 2026. The new DEIS Strategy will focus on improving the opportunities and achievement levels of children at risk of educational disadvantage, developing more innovative solutions 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. A key part of this Strategy will be the introduction of the new DEIS Plus scheme.
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 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 we intend to publish in quarter 1, 2026. Future allocation of overall resources will be considered within the context of the new DEIS Strategy and the availability of resources.
