Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday, I attended Mental Health Reform’s online publication of a report, My LGBTI+ Voice Matters. It is an extensive piece of research which looks at the experiences of the gay, lesbian and trans community within our mental health services. One statistic that certainly stands out is that 19% of those who access mental health services in Ireland identify as lesbian, gay or trans, so one in five of our mental health service users identify as LGBT. The report makes a number of recommendations around improving mental health services but in particular around building the LGBT capacity of those who work within mental health service providers. It is a very useful report. This being Pride month, the whole question of mental health supports for those who are members of the LGBT community is important. I recommend that the report would contribute towards that broader debate around how we engage with our mental health services.

The Schools of Sanctuary programme has been operating in Ireland since 2017. It is where schools all around the island of Ireland are identified as safe and welcoming environments, particularly for those from different ethnic minorities. It talks about the value of inclusion. The newest school to be designated as a School of Sanctuary, I am glad to say, is Creagh College in Gorey, which amazingly now has 49 nationalities in the school and, apart from Irish and English, 23 languages are spoken among the students. I hope other schools take up the opportunity to become a School of Sanctuary. Further, I would like to extend congratulations to the principal, Paul Glynn, the deputy principal, Janet Wallace, and all the students and staff who have achieved that title of School of Sanctuary for Creagh College. Again, we should encourage as many schools as possible around the country to seek to become Schools of Sanctuary.