Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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1069. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of children requiring EAL supports per annum, since 2015, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41645/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Department has adapted to the dynamic landscape of student enrolment and has prioritised enhancing English as an Additional Language (EAL) support, recognising the critical role of language.

All schools are advised in the first instance to review whether the needs of newly enrolled pupils can be met from within existing allocations. Language supports are also included through the Special Education Teaching (SET) which encompasses an element of language support allocation. Under this SET model, schools are frontloaded with resources to provide support immediately to those pupils who need it without delay.

The Department’s Inspectorate report Meeting Additional Language Needs: Whole-school and Classroom Approaches for Inclusive Language Learning outlines the best practice approaches in the teaching and learning of EAL involving mainstream teachers. The report underscores the importance of English language provision for educational equity and well-being and applauds schools for promoting diversity and belonging. The Department will use its recommendations to enhance learning experiences across all schools.

The Department's policies enable flexible resource allocation to ensure that the resources follow pupils in the event of them changing schools. These supports to schools, based on an application process, are provided for new-entrant pupils (i.e., pupils arrived in the country in the last 2 years with an EAL requirement). Similar to previous years, supports may also be provided for schools with a high concentration of pupils that are not classified as new-entrant pupils but who have an EAL need i.e., those pupils with less than 3 years EAL support and register less than B1 in an English proficiency test.

The Department's policies enable flexible resource allocation to ensure that the resources follow children in the event of them changing schools. Schools may also apply for further language support during the school year, should their circumstances change. In addition further additional temporary EAL support is also provided through the Primary and Post-Primary Staffing Appeals Board.

Since the Department processes EAL applications based on individual school requests for additional supports, supplementing existing allocations, a complete overview of the total number of children needing EAL support across all schools is not available.