Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats)
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279. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of children in the past five years that have left school before completing the Leaving Certificate, in tabular form. [26987/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The most recent figures available concerns the students who began their post primary education in 2017. This cohort were due to complete their Leaving Certificate in the academic years 2021-22 or 2022-23. Figures for the 2018 cohort finishing in 2023-24 are yet to be published.

Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats)
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280. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the oversight mechanisms in place to ensure that the report of a child at risk of early school leaving to Tusla is dealt with in a reasonable timeframe [26989/25]

Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats)
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281. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the length of time it takes from when a child who is at risk of early school leaving is referred to TUSLA and TUSLA responding to the school over the past two academic years, in tabular form. [26990/25]

Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats)
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282. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the definition of early school leaving. [26991/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 280, 281 and 282 together.

Tusla Education Support Service (TESS), which includes the statutory Educational Welfare Service (EWS), is under the remit of my department since 2021. TESS operates under the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, a piece of legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention. The Act provides that every child either attends school regularly or otherwise receives a certain minimum education; to ensure and secure every child’s entitlement to education. The Act defines a child as being, a person resident in the State, who has reached the age of 6 years, and who has not reached the age of 16 years or has not completed 3 years of post-primary education, whichever occurs later. In this context, for Tusla, any child who leaves school before this requirement is reached is an early school leaver.

The primary role of the EWS is to ensure that every child either attends school regularly or otherwise receives a certain minimum education. Educational Welfare Officers (EWOs) work with children, young people, and their families and schools experiencing school attendance problems. Schools are obligated under the Act 2000 to submit an Annual Attendance Report and a Student Absence Report.

My Department has been informed by TESS that in order to receive a casework response from an EWO, a school, agency, or parent must submit a referral to the service. Where a school has cause for concern over a student’s attendance, for whatever reason, and in spite of all efforts at resolution made at the school level in collaboration with the home, a formal Educational Welfare Referral should be made via the Tusla Portal to the EWS. To access the service of an EWO, a referral must be made. The service also accepts referrals from parents and other agencies. The EWS has a standard operating procedure for screening referrals, determining if they meet the threshold for an EWO intervention, and prioritising responses.

Senior Educational Welfare Officers (SEWOs) screen all referrals received and inform the referrer of the outcome of the screening. Referrals are screened in where the child is within the compulsory school attendance age and where there are ongoing concerns about poor school attendance that have not improved after appropriate school-based interventions.

As per the EWS standard operating procedure for referrals to the service, SEWOs screen all referrals for response. Children and young people with no school place or who have been notified as an intention to expel, are prioritised and allocated immediately to an EWO. All other referrals are screened by the SEWO and allocated to an EWO when capacity in a caseload allows. Caseloads are reviewed every 4-6 weeks by EWOs and SEWOs who manage the progress of cases and allocate referrals. Responses to referrals are delivered by an EWO casework response, school attendance clinic or early intervention from a Duty EWO.

The EWS does not currently collect length of time for response to provide in tabular form.

Jen Cummins (Dublin South Central, Social Democrats)
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283. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to make the Leaving Certificate as the minimum qualification for early school leaving. [26992/25]

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, legislation that emphasises the promotion of school attendance, participation and retention.

Under the Act education is compulsory for a child resident in the State who has reached the age of 6 years and who (a) has not reached the age of 16 years, or (b) has not completed 3 years of post-primary education, whichever occurs later.

There is no obligation on any student to take the State Certificate examinations, hence there is no minimum qualification requirement for school leaving. There are currently no plans to make the Leaving Certificate a minimum qualification for school leaving.