Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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5. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline her assessment of the teacher recruitment and retention emergency at primary and secondary school level; the measures she intends to address it; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8926/25]

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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Will the Minister outline her assessment of the teacher recruitment and retention emergency at primary and secondary levels and the measures she intends to take to address it?

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Government is fully committed to ensuring that every child has a positive school experience and is supported to reach their full potential. Key to that is making sure we have the teachers, not just at primary level but also at post-primary level, and that teaching staff in schools are qualified, engaged and supported in the work they do.

As with all sectors, there are recruitment challenges in some, but not all, schools. We know particular areas and parts of the country are affected. To address teacher supply issues, the Government has already implemented a number of measures that have led to an increase of 20% in initial teacher education graduates. In other words, the number of student teachers increased by 20% between 2018 and 2023, which has resulted in a 30% increase in the number registered with the Teaching Council since 2017.

Between 2018 and 2024, there was a significant increase in allocated teaching posts at primary and post-primary levels, with more than 5,500, or 13.08%, at primary level and 17%, or more than 6,000, at post-primary level. We acknowledged that there needed to be an increase and we introduced a number of measures in recent budgets, including a STEM bursary, a professional master of education, PME, fee refund scheme and an expansion of upskilling programmes. These were in addition to workforce planning for teachers and SNAs, reflecting the commitment to ongoing investment in the education system to address teacher supply.

The Department has also been working on an analysis of the teacher workforce. Data for March 2024 show that there were more than 78,000 qualified teachers employed in Ireland, with 43,000 at primary level, including special schools, and more than 35,000 in post-primary schools. I will make this data available in the near future.

I am looking at what further measures we can take. The most acute issue is at post-primary level, in particular for certain subjects. I know from speaking to the unions recently that certain schools cannot provide subjects or they have pulled back from them because the teachers are not available. At a very early stage I asked my team and the officials in the Department to look at what is working, what more we can do and where we can think outside the box. Some of that will require simple changes. Other changes may require funding. As such, they will have to be part of the overall budgetary process.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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Will the Minister give us a timeline for those proposals and outline the nature of them? I appreciate that some may require funding. The picture is one of a crisis and emergency. At primary level, there has a shortage of more than 2,500 teachers for the 2024-25 academic year. There are many unfilled posts, and a large number of schools have had to use unqualified staff to cover absences.

At secondary level, it was reported in a recent survey that 64% of schools have unfilled vacancies due to recruitment and retention difficulties and that 20% have been forced to drop subjects as a result. One of the measures that was previously introduced, but there seems to be a delay in relation to it this time round, is the likes of a time-bound provision for people who could do their droichead or induction in Ireland if they trained elsewhere. I know from the Teaching Council that this was due to happen in quarter 1 but that it been delayed slightly. Is that something the Minister would like to introduce?

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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On the Deputy's final question, that work is under way. I hope to see it implemented or progressed in the coming months. I am very aware that while it will not resolve matters, it is will support the provision of additional allocations or teachers. It is very important to me that we do not just support the teachers in schools but also that we have more coming through colleges. I will be working closely with the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Lawless, to make sure that we have the relevant and adequate spaces to provide teachers with training and also that we support teachers in schools where there may be a desire to upskill, retrain or move between the various different levels as well.

As stated, in the very early days I asked the Department to look at what other ways we could support teachers. The programme for Government clearly sets out a commitment to the development of a workforce plan to recruit and retain teachers, but also to encourage teachers to return. Many teachers have travelled abroad for different reasons - to experience different countries and ways of living - but I want to make sure that as many of them as possible return and, importantly, that they will come back and teach in schools here when they get home.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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The recognition of experience abroad is important. I encourage the Minister to engage with her colleague the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Browne, on the housing crisis, which is a major issue for teachers and a major driver when it comes to people leaving the country and not taking up teaching here.

In responding to the situation relating to recruitment, we must continue to increase the number of training places and look at alternative pathways into the sector. However, we must also look at the position in respect of retention. I ask the Minister to consider two points in that regard and to come back to me on them. One relates to investment in leadership at school level. I refer to posts of responsibility. These are positions that were hollowed out during the years of austerity. A related matter that has come up a number of times at both primary and secondary level is the likes of issues such as parental leave and the lack of flexibility in that regard. Surely parental leave should be able to be taken one or two days at a time. It would be more attractive for teachers and it would also provide continuity for students.

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Perhaps I should have said at the outset that teaching is an attractive career. That is reflected in the fact that there has been a significant increase in the number of people who have applied to become teachers and who have registered with the Teaching Council. The increase of 13% and 17% in both primary and post-primary allocated teaching posts reflects the fact that we committed to increasing the overall number of teachers. I appreciate that we need to do more. For that reason, I hope as soon as possible to outline a number of ways in which we can encourage even more entrants into the profession and that we can retain and support those who are there. That could be, for example, by working through a new overall pay agreement. In recent years the starter salary for teachers has increased significantly through those negotiations. They must happen on a whole-of-government basis.

We are focused on what more we can do to support those in leadership positions and to provide resources to make sure that we have a continued increase in the capacity of our capital programme, which has seen billions invested in recent years. All of this will help us address the challenges that exist but also provide positive opportunities for students and teachers.