Barry Ward (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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1143. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the free schoolbook scheme for students in Junior Cycle years; if consideration has been given to including private schools as part of this initiative; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42693/25]

Barry Ward (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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1144. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the existing free schoolbook scheme for students in Junior Cycle years is under review; if it is proposed to expand this to parents who send their children to private schools but may still require additional financial support to buy schoolbooks; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42694/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1143 and 1144 together.

As Minister for Education, I believe it is crucially important that children and young people are actively supported to access education in its fullest forms. This Government recognises that the cost of preparing children for school each September can be a cause of financial difficulty and worry for many Irish families.

As you are aware, in February last I announced the details of the final phase of the Post-Primary Schoolbooks Scheme, which extends the Junior Cycle Schoolbooks Scheme to all students in Senior Cycle, including Transition Year, in post-primary schools in the Free Education Scheme.

The revised guidance for post-primary schools was published in March and provides advice and support to schools on how the scheme is to be implemented. It can be accessed at www.gov.ie/schoolbookschemes. Post-Primary Schoolbooks Scheme funding issued to post-primary and special schools in March to ensure schools have sufficient time to implement the scheme in advance of the 2025/26 school year. Under the scheme, schoolbooks are the property of the school and are supplied on loan to students.

The funding provided under the Post-Primary Schoolbooks Scheme is specifically to provide free schoolbooks and core classroom resources to all students enrolled in post-primary schools in the Free Education Scheme. Private fee-charging post-primary schools are not in the Free Education Scheme and are therefore not eligible to receive funding under the Post-primary Schoolbooks Scheme.

My department is currently conducting an evaluation of both the primary and post-primary schoolbooks schemes, in conjunction with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation. The evaluation includes consultation with key stakeholders. It aims are to assess the wider impacts of the schoolbooks scheme, to review the operation of the scheme, to identify possible improvements going forward and to consider measures to improve efficiency for future years.