Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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NEPS provides educational psychological support to all primary, post-primary, and special schools.

NEPS provides all schools with:

• 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),
• the School Staff Support and Development Service, to build school capability to provide a comprehensive continuum of support in schools,
• ongoing access to advice and support for schools, and
• an advisory service to schools where a psychologist is not available due to a vacancy.

The number of educational psychologists currently employed in NEPS stands at 234 whole time equivalents (WTE) across six regions.

My department is making every effort to recruit additional educational psychologists. Since January 2023, NEPS has supported bursaries for Trainee Educational Psychologists who are enrolled in the University College Dublin Professional Doctorate in Educational Psychology and Mary Immaculate College Limerick’s Professional Doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology. This has also been extended to students enrolled in Maynooth Universities professional doctorate in educational psychology.

Those in receipt of a bursary commit to joining NEPS upon graduation. There are over 70 Trainee Educational Psychologists in receipt of a bursary who are expected to join NEPS upon graduation.

The Public Appointments Service advertised a recruitment campaign for Educational Psychologists recently and successful candidates should be appointed shortly.