Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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982.To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of full and partial scholarships awarded to children by her Department to attend Gaeltacht summer colleges each year for the past five years; and the cost per year. [33468/24]

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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The DEIS Gaeltachta initiative commenced in 2019 with an allocation of €50,000 in order to assist in providing opportunities to post-primary school students attending DEIS schools to attend recognised Irish summer colleges.

Additional funding was allocated to this initiative in 2022 bringing the total funding available for the scheme to €400,000 annually. Up to 400 scholarships are offered annually. The value of each scholarship varies in terms of the duration of the course, for example scholarships for a 3-week course are worth up to €850, while those for a 2-week course are worth up to €722.

The DEIS Gaeltachta scheme is administered by Galway Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB) on behalf of my Department.

The table below provides further information in relation to uptake of the scholarship scheme over the past 5 years.

Figures in respect of 2024 are not yet available.

The Deputy should also be aware that an additional €0.5m was included in the 2024 REV for the provision of additional scholarships for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. An announcement will be made over the coming months as regards the distribution of these additional monies for the 2025 summer season.

The Department is aware that there are other scholarship schemes in operation by sporting organisations for example and other bodies. However, my Department has no oversight of other scholarships and, therefore, would not have any information in relation to their uptake.