Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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879. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of post-primary teaching posts that currently remain unfilled, for each county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45984/25]

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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880. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of primary teaching posts that currently remain unfilled, for each county , in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45985/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 879 and 880 together.

This Government is fully committed to ensuring that every child has a positive school experience, with access to qualified and engaged teachers who are dedicated to supporting their learning.

Given that school authorities manage the recruitment process independently, my Department does not collect data on recruitment by individual employers. However, an analysis has been undertaken of teacher payroll data to obtain a better understanding of the teacher workforce. The latest teacher payroll data, as of March 2025, shows there are 79,225 teachers employed in our schools across the country with 43,221 at primary level including special schools and 36,004 in post-primary schools.

The number of unfilled teaching posts continues to be low with the recent analysis of teacher payroll data showing, as of March 2025, that 2.5% of the 74,611 allocated posts were unfilled. The number of unfilled allocated posts at primary and post-primary was 1,228 (3.1%) and 619 (1.8%) respectively. This analysis is a snapshot at a point in time of the relevant data, and schools continually recruit throughout the year

There are less than 1% resignations in the primary sector each year and 1.6% in post-primary. The number of teachers who retired over the past number of years has varied, with 932 in 2013 and 1,074 in 2023.

I am committed to addressing teacher supply, and announced new teacher supply measures in recent months including assisting teachers gain permanent roles more quickly.

Additionally, the Teaching Council is to streamline the registration process for eligible teachers who qualified outside of Ireland, allowing them to apply for registration and complete their induction requirements within the country.

Several measures are already in place to support teachers who either qualified in the State or abroad and who are working abroad. Measures introduced in recent budgets included a STEM bursary to increase the number of teachers in STEM subjects available to post-primary schools, a PME fee refund scheme, expansion of upskilling programmes which is in addition to more flexible substitution measures, promotion of the teaching profession as a career and workforce planning for teachers and SNAs, reflect the commitment to ongoing investment in the education system to address teacher supply.

Measures implemented by my Department have led to an increase of 20% in Initial Teacher Education graduates (student teachers) between 2018 and 2023, and a 30% increase in the number of teachers registered with the Teaching Council since 2017.

The profession is highly attractive, with strong demand for teacher education programmes with 3,700 newly qualified teachers registered with the Teaching Council in 2024. Salaries are competitive, starting at €44,879 (primary) and €46,448 (post-primary) and rising to €85,000 under the current pay deal.

Around 6% of first-choice CAO applications from 2017–2024 were for teaching, showing steady demand. In 2025, first preferences rose by 9% for primary and 5% for post-primary teaching. 85% of newly appointed primary teachers in 2024/25 are on full-time, mostly fixed-term contracts. Over 75% of new post-primary teachers are employed full-time. 93% of teachers with 5+ years’ experience hold permanent full-time or pro-rata contracts.

My Department frequently consults and engages closely with stakeholders on issues such as teacher supply through industrial relations forums, sectoral meetings, and direct discussions with teacher unions.

In addition to recently announced measures, I will continue to consider further measures to strengthen the teaching workforce and ensure that schools have the support needed to provide an excellent education for every student.