Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

380. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline what the €2 million allocated in budget 2024 for “attendance and retention – measures for implementation” relates to; what it has been allocated for and used for; the amount of it which has been spent to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43109/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Under Budget 2024 I secured €2 million to fund measures to support the attendance and retention the most educationally disadvantaged children.

I was glad today, 22 October 2024, to announce one measure under this funding, the extension of Strand 1 of the Counselling in Primary Schools Pilot to 61 urban DEIS primary schools in Tallaght, Clondalkin, Finglas, Ballymun and Darndale.

Research on addressing the impact of educational disadvantage, including the OECD Review of Resourcing Schools to Address Educational Disadvantage in Ireland, have highlighted the negative impact of social deprivation on well-being and educational outcomes.

The schools that will now be included in the pilot have been identified by the Department of Education as supporting children from areas with some of the highest levels of disadvantage in the State.

This extension will provide access to the Counselling in Primary Schools pilot to 56 DEIS Urban Band 1 schools and 5 DEIS Urban Band 2 schools in two clusters:

1. Dublin Southwest and

2. North Dublin City.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) on behalf of the Department will establish panels of pre-approved private counsellors to provide in-person one-to-one counselling to support the primary schools in these clusters.

Participating schools will be allocated blocks of up to eight counselling sessions per child for a small number of children in the school. Sessions are book-ended by a pre and post-session meeting with parents/legal guardians and relevant school staff (in addition to the six sessions for the child). Participating schools are advised centrally of their specific allocation. Schools are responsible for commissioning counsellors from the panel to provide the counselling under the CPSP. Schools agree with the counsellors dates and times of the sessions, subject to their allocation. The counselling is provided by the counsellor in-person, in the school during school hours.

Further plans for the allocation and use of the funding provided under Budget 2024, for increasing services in school retention and completion programmes and supports targeted at the most educationally disadvantaged children are being finalised.