Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 February 2026
513. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth if an evaluation of Oíche na hÓige has taken place; if it will be an annual event; if a date has been set for 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14376/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra514. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Education and Youth the learnings obtained from the evaluation of Oíche na hÓige in terms of community awareness and participation; the way in which the 2026 iteration address geographic and sectoral gaps and accessibility for marginalised groups; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14377/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 513 and 514 together.
On 21 November 2025 youth clubs and projects across Ireland celebrated Oíche na hÓige (Youth Night). This was a new initiative organised by the Department of Education and Youth with the help of stakeholders including the education and training boards, the National Youth Council of Ireland, and other national youth organisations. The objective of Oíche na hÓige was to provide an opportunity for communities across Ireland to come together to celebrate young people, youth clubs and services, and the youth workers and volunteers who make such a difference to the lives of hundreds of thousands of young people across Ireland.
The department is currently evaluating Oíche na hÓige 2025. This evaluation will consider its impact in raising the public profile of youth work services as well as investigating what improvements can be made to the design of the initiative. Polling commissioned on the department’s behalf by the National Youth Council of Ireland revealed that 27% of respondents had heard of Oíche na hÓige, while 5% said they had attended an event. This is an encouraging result for a new event. This result reflects the hard work by clubs, projects, organisations and ETB staff. It also reflects the effective communications campaign which accompanied the initiative, including the promotional campaign organised by NYCI with the support of the department.
While evaluation of the event is ongoing, national youth organisations embraced Oíche na hÓige with enthusiasm and initial feedback has been strongly positive. Over 480 events were notified to the department by ETBs, while national youth organisations have informed the department that many of their members undertook additional Oíche na hÓige events without grant support from the department.
It is intended that there will be a repeat event in 2026. Design of this event, including considerations as to the date of event, will be informed by the learnings from Oíche na hÓige 2025.
