Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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258. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she supports a €20 per child mental health support programme in schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43400/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The demand for the provision of responsive services to support the mental health of children and young people in Ireland is increasing, particularly in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic and reported associated increased levels of anxiety.The provision of child and adolescent mental health services in Ireland lies specifically within the remit of the Department of Health and the HSE. Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) is a service that provides assessment and treatment for young people who are experiencing mental health difficulties. However, the Department of Education plays an important role in supporting the well-being and mental health of our young people and is currently funding a range of initiatives and supports in this area. I recently announced a €5 million pilot programme of counselling and mental health supports for primary schools, which will run for the 2023/2024 school year. The new pilot includes two strands and will work to mitigate the mental health challenges which may be experienced by children in our schools. The counselling service provided under the Pilot Programme is not a substitute for services provided by HSE Primary Care Psychology and/or CAMHS. It is also not intended to replace the work that is currently provided by school staff to promote the wellbeing of children. The Pilot Programme is an interim measure intended to supplement these services and provide mental health and wellbeing support for children in primary schools.

Strand 1 will see the establishment of county panels of pre-approved private counsellors to provide in-person one-to-one counselling to support primary school children in schools in counties Cavan, Laois, Leitrim, Longford, Mayo, Monaghan and Tipperary. Participating schools will be allocated blocks of up to six counselling sessions (per child) for a small number of children in the school. The sessions will be book-ended by a pre and post session meeting with parents/legal guardians and relevant school staff. Parents and school staff are seen as key agents of change in a child’s life and will be part of the intervention with the child and will be guided and encouraged to support the child at home and at school on an ongoing basis.

Strand 2 will see the establishment of a new type of support from Education Wellbeing/Mental Health Teams for clusters of primary schools in Cork, Carlow, Dublin 7 and Dublin 16. This Strand will see the introduction of Education Wellbeing/Mental Health Practitioners, who will work as part of a team under the direction and supervision of NEPS, to provide enhanced in-school support in the form of low level evidenced based cognitive behavioural interventions. The focus of the support to be provided under Strand 2 is on strengthening whole school preventative approaches. This includes the provision of psycho-education support for parents and teachers, and the provision of early intervention to children with mild/emerging need, using low-level therapeutically-informed approaches.

This pilot is in addition to the existing supports for well-being and mental health in schools. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides direct support in the event of a critical incident, access to national and regional support and development work to build school capacity to support students, access to individual pupil casework where there is need. NEPS works closely with the HSE and its agencies to ensure those who may require the provision of therapy or counselling are referred on to the appropriate clinical services for intervention and support. Psychologists from NEPS are also facilitating post-primary schools to improve the Student Support Team process. Student Support Teams are the structure through which key well-being and well-being-related policies are implemented in post-primary schools.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) have developed training for school staff on the promotion of well-being and resilience in schools which include upskilling school staff on the use and implementation of therapeutically-informed approaches in schools. These include trauma-informed approaches, based on the principles of cognitive behaviour therapy, and attachment-aware approaches. The approaches outlined in the training are based on research findings, on the experience of experts in their fields and on the experience of practising psychologists working in schools. The training will build the capability of school staff in both primary and post-primary settings, including for school leaders, teachers and SNAs. NEPS provides training for school staff on the Friends for Life programmes to help reduce anxiety in children and on the Incredible Years Classroom Management System. NEPS has also launched an eLearning course - Responding to Critical Incidents in Schools. This course is aimed specifically at the school’s Critical Incident Management Team but is open to all interested staff.