Ms Anne Tansey:

The well-being of our leaving certificate students is very important and it is a very stressful time. We have a range of supports, and I have mentioned some of them today, whereby we support schools to support the well-being of students, including our leaving certificate students.

One of the things we have been doing over recent years is engaging closely with the HSE and with the services it provides, and it is being very responsive to us. At particular times, for example, during the Covid-19 period, which we anticipated would be stressful for leaving certificate students, we were able to connect with our colleagues in health and they were able to provide enhanced supports at their end in anticipation of an increased ask or demand from the sector. At other times over this period when, for example, the results were coming out or when changes were being announced on the leaving certificate, which happened over recent years, we would have got in touch with our colleagues in health and would have told them we anticipated there would be an increased demand.

They were able to put increased resources into the services they are providing at their end to support access to e-mental health services, online counselling, telephone and text support. That is one element of what we are doing on an ongoing basis.

Another action we have taken recently, as part of a joint item of work with our colleagues in the Department of Health, is the circulation of leaflets to all schools in Ireland, including post-primary schools, on mental health and well-being information. Those leaflets have been delivered in hard copy as well as electronically. It is a signposting tool and a guide for schools, students and their parents to know how to access services. I have the leaflet to hand and the services listed range from MyMind, Turn2Me, Aware and SpunOut. Every school has received hard copies of quite a number of those leaflets in recent weeks as well as in electronic format. We have also published revised guidelines for our student support teams and they have been circulated to schools in recent weeks. They are all about strengthening how school support teams can support the well-being and welfare of all students within the school setting both from a universal approach taking a whole-school approach as well as taking account of the targeted needs of some students. That would include engaging and signposting the supports the Department of Health, the HSE, and its service providers, are providing.