Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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797. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the action she will take to increase educational initiatives in schools to address the growing number of racially motivated physical and verbal assaults on minority communities across the State. [45149/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My department is committed to delivering an education system that is of the highest quality, and where every child and young person feels safe, valued and is actively supported and nurtured to reach their full potential.

Oide, the department funded support service for teachers and school leaders, provides a variety of professional learning to teachers that places the learner at the centre of the learning experience. It provides school-based supports, workshops, specific resources and teacher professional learning online and in person. Oide has dedicated Wellbeing teams at primary and post-primary. These teams support teachers and schools, to effectively implement the Social Personal and Health Education curriculums, which seek to develop and promote the personal development, health and wellbeing of the student, to create a positive school environment and culture, and, to prevent and tackle bullying, including online bullying and harassment

My department will continue to support the delivery of these initiatives. The rights of individuals and groups in Ireland are protected under the Constitution, and by extensive sectoral legislation and regulation, including equality and employment legislation, among others.

My department published updated anti-bullying procedures for all schools entitled ‘Bí Cineálta: Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Primary and Post-Primary Schools’ on the 19 June 2024. These procedures replace the 2013 anti-bullying procedures for primary and post-primary schools and the requirements of these procedures come into effect from 1 September 2025.

These anti-bullying procedures came into effect in all schools from the beginning of the 2025/2026 school year and have been updated to take account of gender identity bullying, cyberbullying, racist bullying, sexist bullying, and sexual harassment.

They support schools to develop clear strategies to prevent and address these bullying behaviours which can include bullying behaviour towards students from diverse backgrounds.

Bullying behaviour can be considered criminal behaviour under certain circumstances and legal consequences can apply.

If bullying behaviour involves physical violence or threats of violence, it may be considered assault. If bullying behaviour involves discrimination or hate speech targeting a student based on their race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, sexual orientation or membership of the Traveller community, it may be considered a hate crime under the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act 1989, and those engaging in such behaviour may face criminal charges. An Garda Síochána is the appropriate authority to investigate alleged criminal behaviour.

As part of the National Action Plan against Racism (NAPAR), the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) was tasked with reviewing and updating the Intercultural Guidelines for primary and post-primary schools to support the further integration of intercultural education in the curriculum. The process of updating is now underway, informed by a review. The guidelines will be updated by Q4 2025.

My Department also published the Traveller and Roma Education Strategy in the summer of 2024 along side the first two year implementation plan. Actions in that strategy include the recent publication of an online video resource exemplifying approaches to including Traveller history and culture in the curriculum. The NCCA is also committed to publishing examples of pedagogy and child/student work related to Traveller culture and history. Work in supporting Traveller culture and history in the curriculum will be embedded in the updated intercultural education guidelines publications.

The Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice acknowledges that schools provide opportunities to develop friendships and to respectfully encounter diversity and access support structures. The policy promotes the provision of a whole-school approach to supporting wellbeing, an approach that has been found internationally to produce a wide range of educational and social benefits for individual children and young people, including increased inclusion, greater social cohesion, increased social capital and improvements to mental health.

The National Educational Psychological Services’ (NEPS) support and development work involves the provision of applied psychology services for teachers and school communities to build and maximise their capacity to respond to the needs of all students. The following programmes around inclusion are delivered by NEPS nationally:

• Embracing Diversity includes looking at cultural and linguistic diversity, promoting inclusive practice in education, key psychological constructs such as bias, stereotyping and intersectionality, inclusive language and examples of good practice in schools.
• Welcome to our school: addresses how to support children and young people from international backgrounds, adopt key psycho social principles (the Hobfoll principles) effective at addressing the wellbeing needs of those impacted by a traumatic event.