Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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262. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide a progress update on the Primary School Healthy Eating Education Programme as outlined in the Programme for Government. [47031/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Work is ongoing in my Department in relation to how to best give effect to the Programme for Government commitment to establish a new Primary School Healthy Eating education programme, building on the existing wide range of provision in schools in the area of healthy lifestyles. This includes promotion of healthy lifestyle choices through the curriculum, where appropriate, for example, Physical Education and Social Personal Health Education (SPHE); through schools policy including healthy lunch policies; and by the use of resources and programmes chosen by the school. The Active School Flag (ASF) is one such programme. This work aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge to enable them to make the right choices for healthy lifestyles throughout their lives.

My Department supports Agri Aware’s Incredible Edibles programme, a healthy eating initiative for Primary School pupils, and The Food Dudes Programme, a healthy eating programme developed to encourage children to eat more fresh fruit and vegetables.

Throughout school, our young people are educated about the dangers of eating food which is unhealthy during their primary and second level education. The SPHE programme is a mandatory part of the curriculum in primary schools and in junior cycle. The programme is supported by comprehensive teacher guidelines and curriculum support services, which provide training and advice for schools, and also a resource directory.

In 2020 the NCCA established two development groups, one for primary and one for post-primary, to oversee the work in redeveloping the SPHE/RSE programme and support the development of guidance material for schools. An immediate focus of the work of the NCCA has been on creating support materials for teachers for publication online as part of an Interim Guidance Toolkit.

In tandem with this work, preparation for the broader redeveloping and updating of the SPHE curriculum is underway. Updated curricula will be developed for Primary, Junior Cycle and Senior Cycle. The Deputy may wish to note that the draft specification for Junior Cycle was published for consultation in July and includes a strand on making healthy choices. Public consultation on the updated junior cycle SPHE curriculum will conclude Oct 18th. I would encourage anyone with an interest in this topic – students, teachers, parents, stakeholder groups, any member of the public – to take the opportunity to have your views heard by contributing to this public consultation.

Following publication of the Primary Curriculum Framework, expected in early 2023, the NCCA will establish a development group which is due to commence development on updated primary specifications in Quarter 4 2022, with a draft estimated to be available for public consultation in Quarter 1 2024.