Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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241. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the programme for Government commitment to provide additional supports for school and college students who are homeless, resident in family hubs or in direct provision; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63090/22]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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During my time as Minister for Education I have shown a strong commitment to addressing educational disadvantage. My Department’s Statement of Strategy, sets out the vision and mission of the Department for an educational system where every child and young person feels valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential. It sets as a goal to ensure equity of opportunity in education and that all students are supported to fulfil their potential, recognizing that equality of opportunity and inclusivity must be fundamental principles in our education system. The successful delivery of this goal means that our school system is open and welcoming for all students, regardless of background, and that in particular learners at risk of educational disadvantage will be supported to achieve their full potential. Since June 2020, and over that past three Budget’s I have secured funding to support measures aimed at achieving that goal.

There are considerable supports available for children who are experiencing homelessness, resident in family hubs or in direct provision, both within schools and within the wider system to ensure that their circumstances does not impact on school participation and attendance.

In the 2022/23 academic year the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) Programme was significantly expanded to include an additional 322 schools. From September 2022, the DEIS programme now provides supports and services to over 240,000 students in circa 1,200 schools. This amounts to a €32 million increase in the Department's expenditure on the DEIS programme from 2023. This is the largest ever single increase in investment in the programme and has extended additional resources to those schools most in need. The refined DEIS identification model is an objective, statistics based model and now takes into consideration the significant educational disadvantage experienced by Traveller and Roma learners and by learners residing in direct provision or State-funded emergency homeless accommodation.

TUSLA Education Support Service (TESS) has three strands namely the Statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS) and the two school support services the Home School Community Liaison Scheme (HSCL) and the School Completion Programme (SCP). The three TESS strands work together collaboratively with schools, families and other relevant services to achieve the best educational outcomes for children and young people.

Urban primary schools and post-primary schools designated as DEIS can avail of Home School Community Liaison (HSCL), and School Completion supports provided by TESS to assist with school attendance, retention and progression which can be areas of particular challenge to pupils experiencing homelessness, resident in family hubs or in direct provision. Educational Welfare Officers (EWO) work with DEIS and non DEIS schools, relevant state agencies and support services, providing support to families that are experiencing homelessness.

The extension of the DEIS programme followed on from an investment of €5m I secured for the programme in Budget 2021. This investment allowed for a 1 point improvement in the staffing schedule for Urban Band 1 schools, a reduced student threshold for the allocation of additional Deputy Principal posts in DEIS post-primary schools. It also provided for a 5% increase in funding for the School Completion Programme. I have again increased funding for this programme by a further 5% under Budget 2023, as part of an €8 million allocation to address the impacts of COVID-19 and increase retention rates of students in schools, especially those from groups at risk of educational disadvantage. In addition to this I secured a further €3 million in Budget 2023 that will be provided for social inclusion measures, including enhancing the capacity of the education welfare services in Tusla that are now under the remit of my Department.

While DEIS is the main policy initiative of my Department to address concentrated educational disadvantage at school level, I have introduced many initiatives to further address the issue of educational disadvantage across all schools.

Under the Programme for Government there was a commitment to seek to make further progress in reducing the pupil teacher ratios in primary schools. Budget 2022 has implemented a further 1 point improvement in the primary schools staffing schedule for the 2022/23 school year meaning primary schools have been allocated teaching posts on an average basis of 1 classroom teacher for every 24 pupils since September 2022. Budget 2023 announced a further reduction in class sizes for primary schools to 23:1 resulting in an increase in the number of teaching staff in our schools. The 1 point improvement will also apply to the enhanced staffing schedule in place in the 306 DEIS Urban band 1 schools.

This Budget measure has brought the teacher allocation ratio in all primary schools to the lowest ever seen at primary level. This is the third successive Budget which has seen an improvement in allocation of teachers to primary schools.

Budget 2023 included the allocation of over €50 million to provide free books to primary school pupils within the free education scheme from September 2023. This measure will eliminate the cost to these families for all school books at primary school, including workbooks. It delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to extend the free school book pilot, currently in 102 DEIS primary schools, as resources permit. The free primary school books scheme will benefit up to 540,000 pupils in approximately 3,240 recognised primary schools, including over 130 special schools.

As Minister I have supported measures to address the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on students at risk of educational disadvantage, providing a total package of support for enhanced educational programmes in the 2021/22 school year costing €102.6 million. The Summer Programme was extended to support children at risk educational disadvantage across all schools and the Covid Learning and Supports Scheme (CLASS) was introduced to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 to students’ learning and well-being. Budget 2023 also includes €20 million in additional funding for summer programmes in 2023 to support students at risk of educational disadvantage and help mitigate learning loss as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. This will bring the total provision for the Summer Programme in 2023 to €40 million.

Meeting the educational needs of children and young people from Ukraine is a priority for the Government, and my Department is determined to support the efforts of school communities across the country who have shown huge commitment and generosity. I announced the establishment of Regional Education and Language Teams (REALTs) to support the needs of Ukrainian children arriving in Ireland. These Education and Language Teams are hosted by the 16 regional education and training boards (ETBs) and are staffed by existing regionally-based education support personnel working closely together to ensure good coordination and alignment of supports for Ukrainian children. My Department is liaising with the teams to ensure all necessary supports for the Ukrainian children are provided as quickly as possible.

The REALT coordinators’ role has now been extended to include non-Ukrainian arrivals residing in International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centres , ensuring one clear and comprehensive system for identification of school places and assistance with supports which will streamline the process for children, families and schools. The role of the REALT coordinator provides operational support while TESS continues to have the responsibility for the child to ensure access to education in line with the provisions of the EU directive.

TESS and the REALTS play key roles, including identifying school places through linking with local schools, engaging with all the relevant government agencies and bodies, providing support and advice to parents and working collaboratively across all departments and agencies to identify and remove all barriers to school attendance.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides a comprehensive, school-based psychological service to all primary and post primary schools through the application of psychological theory and practice to support the well-being, academic, social and emotional development of all learners. Identification of Need, Early Intervention and Prevention Strategies are considered key components to supporting children who experience homelessness, resident in family hubs or in direct provision. The Department’s Well-being Policy Statement and Framework for Practice describes how schools can best promote well-being through the provision of a whole-school, multi-component and preventative approach. In particular, schools are encouraged to use a reflective, school self-evaluation approach to identify and prioritise the needs of its own school community in relation to the promotion of well-being and mental health, and to respond to meeting those needs.

Cineáltas is the new Action plan on bullying that contains 61 actions to prevent and address bullying in schools. The actions have been developed under the four key areas of Wellbeing and provides a holistic approach modelled on four key principles of prevention, support, oversight and community. This will help to support the school community in promoting equality, inclusion and diversity of all our students, especially those students who may find themselves at increased risk of experiencing bullying behaviour.

The School Meals Programme, under the Department of Social Protection, provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,600 schools and organisations benefitting 260,000 children. The objective of the programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to position them to take full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Budget 2022 provided €68.1 million for the programme with an additional €9m provided to allow access to all eligible newly designated DEIS schools from September 2022. Additional funding for the programme has been provided for 2023 bringing the total to €94.4m. This represents a 53% funding increase in the period since 2020.