Michael Cahill (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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339. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there are plans to address the growing teacher shortages and improve retention rates, particularly in primary and special education settings, where the workload is often particularly challenging due to under-resourcing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50406/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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This Government is 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.

While the rate of unfilled teaching posts remains low, I recognise that as with other sectors, recruitment challenges exist in some schools. To support schools to address such issues, the Government has implemented several measures that have led to:

• an increase of 20% in initial teacher education graduates (student teachers)between 2018 and 2023,
• a record number of registered teachers; the Teaching Council reported 94,928 teachers registered in the 2016/17 school year increasing to 122,743 teachers registered in 2023/24. Currently, the Teacher Council have reported that there are over 126,000 on the register representing a 33% increase in the number of teachers registered between 2017 and now.
• the highest number of teachers employed. Recent data showed there were over 79,000 qualified teachers employed in Ireland with over 43,000 at primary level including special schools.
• The rate of resignation and retirement is very low by any standard and is consistent with previous years.

• Commencement of workforce planning for teachers and SNAs. A new project, supported by UNESCO and the EU Commission, will create a strategic plan for managing Ireland’s teaching workforce. The project aims to consider the sustainability of the teaching profession in Ireland, with a focus on the factors that impact teacher supply.This two-year project will involve consultations with key stakeholders to develop recommendations.
• Development of the Teaching Transforms campaign, which promotes the teaching profession and encourage students to follow a career in teaching. The campaigns use digital, radio and video media, and have been developed to coincide with the CAO closing date and change of mind deadline in recent years, and
• Reducing restrictions on jobsharers and those on a career break from working as substitutes in primary schools have been extended to the current school year.

• The Special Education Teaching allocation for mainstream schools provides a single unified allocation for special educational support teaching needs to each school, based on the educational needs profile of each school.
• Schools are frontloaded with ring-fenced SET resources for the purpose of supporting pupils with an identified and recorded special education learning need. This allocation allows schools to provide additional teaching support for pupils who require such support in their schools based on each pupil’s individual learning needs.
• It is a matter for schools to deploy SET resources effectively to meet the needs identified in the Student Support Plans, which should be based on the continuum of support framework. Once the Department allocates SET hours to a school it is the responsibility of the school and the board management to utilise the allocation to meet the needs of those students with special educational needs.