Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Education’s approach to supporting wellbeing and mental health is set out in its Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice. This approach is founded on research and best international practice in relation to how schools can best support the wellbeing and mental health of children and young people. The approach proposed is a whole school and preventative approach which has multiple components that include:

• Providing children and young people with opportunities to build core social and emotional skills and competencies
• Providing children and young people with opportunities to experience supportive relationships within the school setting and to learn through those relationships
• Providing children and young people with opportunities to be part of a school environment and culture that feels both physically and psychologically safe, an environment in which children and young people feel a sense of belonging and connectedness, in which they feel their voice is heard, and they feel supported.
• 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 wellbeing and mental health, and to respond to meeting those needs.

A dedicated wellbeing portal can be accessed via ‘Wellbeing in Education’ on Gov.ie, bringing together all the wellbeing and mental health supports and resources that have been developed by the Department and the Department’s support services.

The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provides access for all schools to:

• Psychological support in the event of a Critical Incident
• A Casework Service for individual children where there is a need for intensive consultation and assessment via a NEPS psychologist or through the Scheme for the Commissioning of Psychological Assessments (SCPA).
• A school staff Support and Development Service, to build school capability to provide a comprehensive continuum of support in schools and
• Ongoing access to advice and support for schools.

NEPS teams offer training and guidance for teachers in the provision of universal and targeted evidence-informed approaches and early intervention to promote children’s wellbeing, social, emotional and academic development. In NEPS, Support & Development can be delivered nationally by working groups, and regionally by teams or by an individual psychologist working with an allocated school. For example, Initiatives such as the Incredible Years Social Emotional learning Programmes and the FRIENDS Resilience Programmes which aim to address anxiety reduction have been welcomed by schools and their impact positively evaluated.

In June 2023, additional resources were allocated by my Department when was launched the pilot of counselling and wellbeing supports in primary schools in selected counties.

The Counselling in Primary Schools Pilot has two strands and works to support children’s wellbeing and mental health in schools. Strand 1 sees direct counselling supports being provided to primary schools for the first time. My Department has set up county panels of pre-approved private counsellors providing one-to-one counselling in primary schools in counties Cavan, Laois, Leitrim, Longford, Mayo, Monaghan and Tipperary. To date, 38 counsellors have been recruited across the 7 pilot counties.

In total, 1,883 blocks of counselling have been allocated to schools across the pilot counties, which provides an allocation to 1,883 children in these counties. In the 2023/2024 school year, 381 children availed of counselling under the pilot.

In October 2024, my Department announced 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. 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.

Strand 2 of the Counselling in Primary Schools Pilot is continuing to support schools in cluster areas in Cork, Carlow, Dublin 7 and Dublin 16, through the introduction of Education Wellbeing Teams. There are currently 20 Education Wellbeing Practitioners working under the direction and supervision of lead NEPS psychologists. The Education Wellbeing Practitioners provide support for pupils, parents, and school staff in preventative evidence-based interventions to prevent mild and emerging social and emotional difficulties.

To further support Strand 2 of the pilot, my Department announced a new Strand 2 Wellbeing Grant Scheme. This is a once-off payment of €2,000, for this school year, to all primary schools in Strand 2 of the pilot to promote and support wellbeing focused initiatives. This funding is being provided directly to schools, to allow flexibility in using the Grant.

Further additional resources were allocated by my Department to post-primary schools. In partnership with Jigsaw, Neart, the new national programme of mental health and wellbeing resources and training for post-primary schools. The new programme will complement the supports already available in schools such as the provision of guidance counselling and the work of NEPS, as well as other existing wellbeing programmes and initiatives including Student Support Team training.

The NEART programme will provide supports to students, parents and school staff;

Support for students will:

• enhance the capacity of Student Support Teams to actively seek and respond to the voice of young people in relation to wellbeing and mental health in schools
• provide learning opportunities for students that promote mental health and wellbeing

Support for parents will:

• enhance parent/carer involvement in wellbeing school initiatives and engagement in promoting wellbeing and mental health in the school community
• enhance Student Support Teams to actively seek and respond to the voice of parent/ guardian in relation to wellbeing and mental health in schools
• provide psychoeducation on the promotion of wellbeing/mental health for parents via webinars and e-learning opportunities.

Supports for school staff will:

• build capacity of staff to promote whole school approaches to wellbeing and mental health awareness
• enhance training and support for Student Support Teams to raise awareness of positive mental health and wellbeing
• provide e-learning opportunities for staff on mental health and wellbeing promotion
• provide wellbeing and self-care webinars and e-learning courses for school staff.

Schools have been encouraged to register their interest in the relevant programme areas to receive up-to-date notifications about online training, webinars and masterclasses.

My Department continues to review our overall approach to fostering good mental health and wellbeing in our schools so that children can be optimally supported to reach their potential.