Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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442. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills whether a funding model will be provided to introduce talks from former gambling industry employees to secondary school students; as schools are currently asked to provide funding to invite guests themselves which is often not feasible; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37852/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Schools have a role to play in supporting their students to develop the key skills and knowledge to enable them to make informed choices when faced with a range of difficult issues, including drugs, alcohol and gambling. This is mainly done through the SPHE programme. SPHE forms part of the mandatory Wellbeing area of learning at Junior Cycle. Wellbeing in Junior Cycle is about young people feeling confident, happy, healthy and connected, and it is one of the principles that underpins Junior Cycle education.

An updated Junior Cycle SPHE specification was introduced in all in September 2023. It places a strong focus on the development of important life skills that young people need growing up in a fast changing and complex world. The learning outcomes of the Making Healthy Choices strand in the updated specification include that students should be able to "discuss societal, cultural and economic influences affecting young people when it comes to making healthy choices about smoking, alcohol and other addictive substances and behaviours, and how harmful influences can be overcome in real-life situations". In the specification’s Glossary of Key Terms, addictive behaviours are defined as including “gaming, gambling and social media addictions”.

An updated Senior Cycle SPHE specification was approved by the Minister for Education in 2024. Schools have until 2027 to introduce this new specification. In the course of the consultation on the Background Paper and Brief for the redevelopment of Senior Cycle SPHE, participants commonly talked about addictive substances and behaviours such as alcohol use and gambling and the need for students to be enabled to recognise addiction and the impact of addiction on emotional wellbeing, on decision-making and on family and friends. The learning outcomes of the Health and Wellbeing strand reflect the outcome of the consultation and include that students should be able to “explain the pathways towards addiction, the signs and consequences of different kinds of addictions and where to go and how to access help, if needed”.

There is no specific funding provided of the nature described by the Deputy. However, a portal site was developed by the NCCA where teachers can access SPHE/RSE teaching and learning resources for all levels in primary and post-primary. The role of the online toolkits is to provide supports for teachers in preparing for and teaching SPHE/RSE. They can also be used to support professional conversations in school and for professional development at a team or whole staff level.

For example, the resources for Junior Cycle SPHE include an article by Jigsaw called ‘Gaming and Mental Health’, which centres on advice for young people in relation to gambling. Senior Cycle SPHE also includes some resources in relation to gambling and addiction in general, such as ‘Pathways to Addiction’, by Psychology Today Ireland, and ‘Addiction and the Brain’, by the American Institute of Biological Sciences.

Oide, the support service for teachers, has provided a series of two day professional learning events for teachers of SPHE in relation to the updated SPHE curriculum specifications and further events are planned during the 25-26 school year.

Decisions on which programmes and initiatives, if any, schools participate in are taken at school level. The Department provides clear guidance to schools on the engagement of outside speakers and on the use of external resources to assist in delivering the curriculum. These guidelines are most recently outlined in updated circular 0042/2018 for primary schools and 0043/2018 for post primary schools. While the circulars make specific references to the Wellbeing area of the curriculum, the guidance should apply in general in relation to external speakers or resources.

As per the above circulars, both primary and post-primary schools are to ensure all external facilitators have not only completed the Garda Vetting process, they must also demonstrate an understanding of the Department’s Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice and appropriate training and qualifications. They are obliged to work under the guidance and supervision of the relevant classroom teacher, who remains in the classroom with the students at all times and retains a central role in the delivery of the subject matter. Their work must also be compliant with the school’s child protection policy. A school’s principal and Board of Management approve all external facilitators, and parents and guardians are to be made aware in advance of the content of the programme.