Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Pringle for raising this important matter, which he also raised with me last week during a debate on these matters. This is a very serious issue and as the Deputy is aware, I have allocated an additional €5 million for mental health supports. Admittedly, €2 million of that was a budget day announcement of additional funding and then a further €3 million was announced as part of the Covid-19 reopening plan, giving a total of €5 million more.

In advance of this question, I got a breakdown by institution in tabular form which I will provide to the Deputy. Of particular interest to Deputy Pringle will be the data for Letterkenny Institute of Technology, which has received an additional €171,000 through the Higher Education Authority, HEA. The purpose of this additional funding, recognising that this is a time of great urgency in terms of student supports, is to increase access to counsellors and psychologists, to implement the consent framework and other initiatives identified in the national student mental health and suicide prevention framework. Student counselling services are the dedicated mental health support services available in all of our institutions. They provide psychological counselling to students experiencing personal adjustment, developmental or psychological problems that require professional attention. They assist students in identifying and learning skills that will help them in effectively meeting their educational and life goals.

The HEA has been assisted by a broad range of stakeholders, including the HSE, the National Office for Suicide Prevention, the Union of Students in Ireland, Psychological Counsellors in Higher Education Ireland and institutional representatives, as well as my Department, in preparing the national student mental health and suicide prevention framework, which I intend to publish in the coming weeks. This will provide a further resource, as we start the new academic year, for supporting student mental health. What I am hearing from students across the country is that in general, the quality of mental health supports is very good but as is often the case with mental health, the main issue is access. What we are trying to do with the €5 million is increase the number of professionals in post who can provide services.

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