Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
347. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether her Department, or any agency or body under its aegis, has at any time entered into a contract, funding arrangement, partnership, service agreement, or other working relationship with the organisation (details supplied); the nature and duration of any such engagement; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11213/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Education and Youth has provided funding towards the organisation in question’s annual Stand Up Awareness Campaign since 2013. The objective of the campaign is to prevent and tackle homophobic and transphobic bullying in schools, increase respect for diversity and LGBT identities and thereby reduce the potential for mental health difficulties among LGBT students.
The department provided the following funding to the organisation during the years specified:
|
Table: Funding to support Stand Up Awareness Campaign 2020-2025 |
|
|
Year |
Funding Amount |
|
2020 |
€58,000 |
|
2021 |
€58,000 |
|
2022 |
€58,000 |
|
2023 |
€90,000 |
|
2024 |
€90,000 |
|
2025 |
€90,000 |
This was in fulfilment of the commitment made in the 2013 Action Plan on Bullying to support Stand Up Awareness Week, and the continued commitment in its 2022 successor Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying to support Stand Up Awareness Week. The organisation makes a funding request for Stand Up Awareness Week each year which is considered by the department. A service level agreement is in place when funding is agreed.
It is a matter for the management of each school to decide on the appropriateness of programmes and pilot projects and seeking external facilitators in promoting wellbeing. The department advises schools to refer to Circulars 0042/2018 and 0043/2018 if considering collaboration with external agencies.
The organisation in question also receives funding from the department under the Youth Services Grant Scheme (YSGS). The YSGS funds national youth organisations to enable them to deliver quality services to young people that support their social and personal development. Organisations funded under the scheme vary considerably in scale and in their activities. A number cater to specific cohorts of young people or to specific interests. These include, for example, scouting and guiding organisations, organisations that specialise in youth work through Irish, and organisations that seek to meet the youth work needs of groups such as rural young people, LGBTI+ young people, and Traveller and Roma young people.
As a national youth organisation funded under YSGS, the organisation in question has also been eligible to apply for and has been awarded funding under the youth services capital fund in recent years. The organisation in question was allocated capital funding in 2022, 2023 and 2025. Details of these grants are set out below. Each grant is subject to a grant agreement signed on behalf of the department and the funded organisation setting out the terms and conditions of funding.
|
Table: Youth funding to the organisation 2020-2025 |
|
|
|
Year |
YSGS grant |
Youth services capital grant |
|
2020 |
€165,640 |
€18,559.11 |
|
2021 |
€218,922 |
€17,145.12 |
|
2022 |
€225,490 |
€10,127 |
|
2023 |
€234,510 |
€19,975.37 |
|
2024 |
€246,236 |
- |
|
2025 |
€259,779 |
€12,500 |
Additionally, the Strategy and Development Unit of the department invited representatives from the organisation in question to attend a stakeholder engagement workshop for the development of the last Statement of Strategy.
Jigsaw, in partnership with the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS)/Department of Education & Youth, provides a comprehensive suite of mental health and wellbeing resources, training and programmes for post-primary schools through Neart. Neart supports schools to provide learning opportunities for students to promote mental health and wellbeing, as well as mental health webinars and eLearning courses for school staff, Student Support Teams and parents. On 13 May 2025 Neart hosted a webinar ‘Supporting the mental health of LGBTQ+ young people’ in partnership with the organisation in question. A full outline of all Neart supports and resources on offer for the 2025/26 academic year is available here [Neart Programme Areas 2025-2026].
Gaisce, the President’s Award has partnered with the organisation in question in the past on programmes including Gaisce's Like Minded project. The organisation provided input to Gaisce's panel discussions on inclusivity in the Award in 2022 and 2023. Gaisce has previously promoted the organisation’s Stand Up Awareness week on its social media channels and occasionally promotes the organisation’s courses. Gaisce has no formal agreement in place with the organisation in question.
