Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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351. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the funding being provided to Traveller/Roma/refugee supports in schools. [31576/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My department is committed to advancing educational equity for all learners, with targeted attention to groups at risk of disadvantage, including Traveller, Roma, and refugee students. To this end, the Traveller and Roma Education Strategy (TRES) 2024–2030, along with its Implementation and Action Plan 2024–2026, was published in July 2024. It represents a six-year, cross-sectoral strategy to improve participation, experience, and outcomes for these communities across early years, school, further, and higher education.

In terms of direct funding:

• €1.5 million was secured in 2024 to establish 15 Community Link Worker roles in 2025, focused on schools with high Traveller and Roma enrolments. These peer-led roles aim to strengthen engagement between schools, families, and communities, and will be evaluated over their initial 18-month term.
• Two national TRES coordinators have been appointed to support implementation of the strategy, with a combined annual cost of approximately €157,000.
• Under the Creative Youth Programme, two initiatives—Creative Clusters and BLAST (Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers)—were launched with a specific Traveller and Roma focus. Funding for these initiatives amounts to circa €250,000.
• An independent evaluation of the STAR-based Creative Youth initiatives is currently underway with an allocated cost of €45,000.
• Funding of €100,000 has also been secured for transition supports in 2025. These initiatives aim to ease the progression from primary to post-primary education for Traveller and Roma children, a point at which dropout risk is heightened.
• 10 HSCL posts in 14 non-DEIS post-primary schools with high levels of Traveller and Roma students at an annual cost of €700,000.

In line with the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy (NTRIS II), the Department remains committed to a whole-of-government approach to addressing systemic disadvantage and ensuring all learners can thrive in an inclusive education system.

My department’s approach is to prioritise integration and inclusion into mainstream education for all children and young people who arrive into the State seeking international protection.

In March 2022, in response to the outbreak of war in Ukraine, Regional Education and Language Teams (REALT) were established to support the needs of Ukrainian children arriving in Ireland. These teams now also support children who arrive seeking international protection arrivals to find a place and enrol in school.

The primary role of REALT is to assist children in finding school places, to support schools to meet the needs of these children as they arise and to co-ordinate the provision of education services to children and families across their defined area. The teams ensure that clear, accessible information flows are in place between schools, local education support services and national support structures.

All children and young people up to the age of 18 years, irrespective of their immigration status, have access to free primary and post-primary education in the same manner as Irish nationals. A school must admit all students applying where it is not oversubscribed, and places are available. Schools must also include a statement in its admission policy stating that the school will not discriminate in its admission on any of nine specified grounds, including race and religion.

If a situation arises where there is no additional capacity in any local schools for a child who is seeking international protection, the REALT co-ordinator will then seek to identify capacity in another area and to organise school transport to those locations.

Where all capacity in a reasonable transport radius has been exhausted, the REALT will then engage with local schools and my department’s Planning and Building Unit to identify an appropriate solution.

The Special Education Teaching allocation provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on each school’s educational profile and encompasses the Language Support (EAL) allocation that schools were allocated in previous years. All schools are advised in the first instance to review whether the needs of newly enrolled pupils can be met from within existing allocations.

My department plays an important role in supporting the wellbeing and mental health of our young people. The approach set out in the department’s wellbeing policy is a whole school and preventative approach, which provides children and young people with opportunities to build core social and emotional skills and competencies. The framework also enables students to experience supportive relationships within the school setting and be part of a school environment and culture that feels both physically and psychologically safe.

In June 2023, the Department of Education launched a pilot of counselling and wellbeing supports in primary schools in selected counties. The Pilot includes 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. Strand 2 of the pilot is the establishment of a new type of support to schools from Education Wellbeing Teams and involves the introduction of Education Wellbeing Practitioners to provide enhanced in-school supports for selected schools.

Neart – the Irish word for strength, is the new national programme of mental health and wellbeing resources and training for post-primary schools. These comprehensive supports have been developed by Jigsaw in partnership with NEPS.

The Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was published on 1st December 2022, is a whole-education approach, which aims to prevent and address bullying in all its forms, including racist bullying, cyberbullying, gender identity bullying, and sexual harassment. Cineáltas is grounded in a child-rights-based approach and aligns with UNESCO’s Whole Education Approach to bullying prevention. It is built around four core principles: prevention, support, oversight, and community. By fostering a collective vision and providing a clear roadmap, the initiative ensures that students, parents, school staff, and the wider community work together to create inclusive and supportive school environments and by addressing identity-based and racist bullying.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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352. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the amount of funding provided, per pupil, for technological devices for school use in DEIS schools across the State. [31577/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, I recently announced €35 million in funding to support digital learning in schools. €35 million in grant funding for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is issuing to all recognised primary and post-primary schools. This ICT funding is being provided to schools to help them continue to use digital technologies in their teaching, learning and assessment and which represents the third tranche of ICT funding under the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027. To note, the funding is for ICT infrastructure, which can include but is not limited to, digital devices.

The Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 and its associated implementation plan is underpinned by funding of €200m over the course of the strategy, committed to under Ireland’s National Development Plan (NDP). The funding allocation model is provided for in the National Development Plan and commits to funding to issue over the period of the NDP, applied by the Department for the Digital Strategy duration (to 2027 for the current strategy).

To date, a total of €100 million of the €200 million committed to in the NDP for the strategy has issued to schools through the ICT grant. While the NDP commitment did not guarantee a specific amount in each year however, it is anticipated that issuing €35m in 2025, as announced by the Minister, will enable the balance of €65 million remaining to issue to schools over the remaining years of the current strategy to 2027.

This funding demonstrates the ongoing commitment to supporting and enabling schools to ensure the continued embedding of digital technologies in teaching learning and assessment.

The information sought by the Deputy in relation amount of funding provided, per pupil, for technological devices for school use in DEIS schools across the State.

1.All schools, primary, post-primary and special schools will receive a lump sum of €2,000 (€1,000 in respect of fee-charging schools) per school.

2.A per capita amount will be paid as follows:

a. €27.86 per pupil on the rolls on the 30th of September 2023 in DEIS category primary schools.

b.€33.44 per student on the rolls on the 30th of September 2023 in DEIS category post-primary schools.

* circular with details of funding breakdown for ICT grant 2023/2024 can be found at www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/circulars/grant-scheme-for-ict-infrastructure/

Under the Education Act, the Boards of Management of Schools have responsibility for the day to day management of schools. Decisions regarding the use and deployment of digital technology in schools is therefore a matter for the Board of Management of each school in the context of their digital learning planning. Schools are advised to consult with members of the school community including parents when planning for the introduction of digital technologies including devices with cost and other implications being fully considered by the Boards of Managements before a decision is made.

Schools, in conjunction with parents, are responsible for decisions on the use of digital technology, including tablet devices, laptops, and learning platforms, and how best to manage their integration into classroom practice reflective of their own context and requirements.

Oide-Technology in Education (the area within my department's support service for teachers specialising in digital technology in teaching and learning, formerly PDST-TiE) offer advice and supports to schools on digital learning. Advice sheets are available on digital technology in education, including on the adoption of laptops and tablets in schools.

It is the responsibility of each individual school to select the resources, if any, that it will use to support its implementation of the curriculum.

Tackling educational disadvantage and supporting students to fulfil their full potential in life is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth, and for the Government. The DEIS programme is a key policy of Government to tackle concentrated educational disadvantage at school level. It provides a targeted range of supports and is additional to the universal supports provided to all schools, such as the introduction of free schoolbooks and free hot school meals. My department invests over €180 million annually to provide additional supports to almost 1,200 schools in the DEIS programme which supports approximately 260,000 students.

As Minister, I am determined to close the performance gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools and introduce more innovative solutions to tackle disadvantage. That is why I am committed to publishing a new DEIS Plan in 2025. Building on the expansion of the DEIS programme in 2022, the new DEIS plan will work towards a more flexible system of supports to ensure that a school can receive the right support at the right time.

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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353. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the funding provided for the HSCL scheme to schools currently and the estimated cost of a 5%, 10% and 20% increase in this funding, in tabular form. [31578/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Tackling educational disadvantage and supporting students to fulfil their full potential in life is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth, and for the Government. The DEIS programme is a key policy of Government to tackle concentrated educational disadvantage at school level. It provides a targeted range of supports and is additional to the universal supports provided to all schools, such as the introduction of free school books and free hot school meals.

My department invests over €180 million annually to provide additional supports to almost 1,200 schools in the DEIS programme which supports approximately 260,000 students.

The Home School Community Liaison (HSCL) scheme is one of the key supports provided by my department as part of the overall DEIS programme. Tusla Education Support Service manage the HSCL scheme on behalf of my department. The scheme seeks to promote partnership between parents, teachers and community family support services, with a view to supporting improved attendance, participation and retention.

All DEIS urban primary schools and all DEIS post-primary schools are included in the HSCL scheme, which currently serves 687 DEIS schools, catering for approximately 207,000 children and young people. The scheme is delivered by 528 full-time HSCL coordinators, who are teachers in these schools and assigned to HSCL duties either in individual schools or in clusters of schools. Over €36 million is spent annually on the pay costs of Home School Community Liaison coordinators in urban primary and post-primary DEIS schools.

In addition to the above, a pilot project to support Traveller and Roma pupils, under the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy, is in operation in 4 locations with 1 HSCL coordinator assigned in each location. A further 10 HSCL Coordinators support attendance, participation and retention among Traveller and Roma students, across 14 non-DEIS post-primary schools.

For DEIS schools included in the HSCL scheme it is a requirement that at least 10% of the annual DEIS grant to each school should be allocated for use on HSCL activities and made available to the HSCL coordinator.

The total DEIS Grant paid to post-primary schools for the 2024-2025 school year was €5,615,813 and the total DEIS Grant paid to primary schools was €15,966,383. DEIS Grants for the upcoming school year 2025/2026 will issue to schools in the coming weeks.

As Minister, I have committed to the publication of a new DEIS Plan later in 2025, and any expansion to the role of the HSCL coordinator will be examined in the context of the new plan. This plan will focus on improving the opportunities and achievement levels of children at risk of educational disadvantage, developing more innovative approaches to tackling educational disadvantage, and working towards a more flexible system of supports to ensure that a school can receive the right support at the right time.

The information on the DEIS grant requested by the Deputy is contained in the following table: