Malcolm Byrne (Wicklow-Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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130. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when it is intended to appoint an education welfare officer for County Wexford; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16215/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) is under the remit of my Department. TESS operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. TESS has three strands namely the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS) and the two school support services the Home School Community Liaison (HSCL) scheme and the School Completion Programme (SCP). The three TESS strands work together collaboratively with schools, parents and guardians and other relevant services to achieve the best educational outcomes for children and young people.

The primary role of the EWS is to ensure that every child either attends school regularly or otherwise receives a certain minimum education; to ensure and secure every child’s entitlement to education.

Educational welfare officers (EWOs) are based throughout the country and work with children, young people and their families who are experiencing difficulty with school attendance; this is done through, home visits, educational welfare conferences and collaboratively working with different agencies. The main priority of the work is around the welfare of children and young people and to ensure that concerns around attendance are addressed before attendance becomes a crisis issue.

There is a total of four EWO posts for County Wexford. Currently there are two vacancies in the county, one of which is expected to be filled in the coming weeks. It is expected the second vacancy will be filled by June 2025 following a recent national EWO recruitment campaign.