Hildegarde Naughton
Galway West · Fine Gael · Ireland
“It is an absolute commitment in the programme for Government to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio over the lifetime of the Government. The Deputy will appreciate I cannot announce anything here in the Dáil. I have to go into negotiations in relation to the upcoming budget.”
“Where we can, we give guidance and I know schools are very well aware of this. They do this well themselves so that where possible, the more junior classes would have a lower class size.”
“The identification model has to be applied consistently right across the country to have fairness and transparency around it. Under the DEIS strategy to 2035, work is under way in my Department, with colleagues in the Central Statistics Office and across other Departments, to utilise other administrative data sources to help improve how w…”
“The school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application under the additional school accommodation, ASA, scheme for an additional temporary classroom in 2025. This school had previously been approved for a permanent extension under the ASA scheme in 2021 for a two-classroom special education needs unit and one mainstream classroom.”
“A huge amount of work is being done on securing specialist places, be it in special classes or special schools. We are far ahead of where we were this time last year. We had a budget for 400 special classes. I got increased funding in March of this year. We are ahead in relation to forward planning.”
“The general average of pupils to teachers in the primary staffing schedule improved from 26:1 five years ago to 23:1 for the current school year. Average class sizes in primary schools have improved from 24.1 to 22.2 through the investment we are making in schools.”
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“It is important to note also that construction work on the new school building for Dunshaughlin Community National School is progressing well and is scheduled to be completed by early 2027. My Department's responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in that area. With respect to language and ethos preferences, parents have the right to choose which school to apply to. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a selection process may be necessary. This may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice. Each year, 140,000 children and young people enter a new school, mainly at junior infant level and at first year in post-primary schools. On the whole, admissions processes run smoothly each year.”
“The provision of school places to meet the needs of children and young people at primary and post-primary level, including children and young people with special educational needs, is an absolute priority for me. Recognising the potential for school place pressures, my Department has been engaging on an ongoing basis with the primary schools in Dunshaughlin and has assessed application and admissions data provided by those schools. In response to the identified need, my Department has engaged with the patron of Dunshaughlin Community National School and has sanctioned the opening of a second junior infant class at the school for 2026. Department officials have been advised by the school that offers have now been made. Parents can be assured that all pupils in Dunshaughlin will have a place available for September.”
“I assure the Deputies that this is a key priority. We have increased capital and current funding. I want to continue to do that and to work with and listen to the sector. I know the importance of youth work across the country.”
“Current funding of €90.1 million will be available this year. That represents a 5%, or €4.5 million, increase on the 2025 allocation. The results of the survey will be analysed. My Department is progressing the workforce development strategy in recognition of the important work that the workforce does within the youth sector. There is also a fund relating to volunteerism, and there is the activation fund. There is €20 million in capital funding allocated to youth services as part of the national development plan. My Department is working with other Departments, including the Department of Children, local authorities and the ETBs, in the area of capital projects. The workforce survey will be really important in the context of informing our work. The consultations will form a key part of that work.”
“I thank the Deputies for raising those issues. Youth workers are employed directly by individual youth organisations. They are not public servants. Their terms and conditions, including pay, are set by those organisations. My Department provides grant funding for the provision of youth services to the organisations in question to meet the needs of young people. It does not directly employ youth workers or set the terms and conditions of employment. My Department is aware that pension provisions across the sector are inconsistent. Some youth organisations have established pension schemes but others have not. The additional current funding that is being provided as part of budget 2026 will help youth organisations to manage the pressures on them, including the costs arising, for example, from pension obligations.”
“I sincerely thank youth workers and employers for the high level of participation in the workforce survey process. The analysis and responses will be extremely useful in informing the strategy's development. Consultations are scheduled to take place in multiple locations around the country during May and June to engage further with youth workers and employers in order to build on the data available through the youth workers and employers survey. Just this week, my officials presented some top-level findings from the surveys at the Inspiring Future Youth Workers seminar that was organised by the National Youth Council of Ireland and funded by my Department under the Bonn process.”
“Over €12 million has been allocated to Youth Work Ireland member organisations to deliver targeted youth work in 2026 under the UBU Your Place, Your Space scheme. With this funding, the Department of Education and Youth continues to support existing youth services and youth organisations, including Youth Work Ireland, while also enabling the expansion of both targeted and universal services for young people. Youth workers and volunteers are essential to the delivery of quality youth services. The Department is also progressing a workforce development strategy in recognition of the need to support the workforce and the youth work sector to ensure that they can continue to provide high-quality, accessible and inclusive youth work opportunities for young people.”
“This allows better long-term planning, investment and value for money. Youth Work Ireland is a key organisation in the sector. It provides youth work to tens of thousands of young people across the country. Its importance is reflected in the support provided by the Department of Education and Youth via multiple funding streams. Over €2.8 million has been allocated to Youth Work Ireland under the youth services grant scheme in 2026, representing a 28% increase since 2020. Youth Work Ireland has also received funding for specific projects under the youth climate justice fund, the volunteer activation fund, and the youth services capital fund. Youth Work Ireland and its member services play a key role in the delivery of targeted youth work interventions.”
“I thank the Deputies for raising this issue. Supporting youth work is a critical aspect of what we do as a Government to support our young people. I thank both Deputies for the opportunity to set out the position with regard to youth work provision and funding provided to Youth Work Ireland from my Department. Youth work services deliver high-quality youth work and non-formal developmental opportunities to young people aged between ten and 24 across Ireland every year. Approximately 450,000 young people participate in youth work services annually. Since 2020, Government investment in youth services has risen from €62.3 million to €90.1 million in 2026. Under the national development plan, €4 million in capital funding will be allocated annually to youth services from 2026 to 2030, providing multiyear certainty for the first time.”
“I appreciate that there is a significant body of work ahead of us, working together to agree a common consensus on the future of special education provision. To be clear, the Government is unwavering in its commitment to special education. It is committed to ensuring that young people with additional educational needs are helped to thrive and to prosper. Our track record and the next steps I have outlined are a testament to that.”
“As mentioned earlier, my Department is also working hard to finalise and publish a workforce development plan for SNAs. I now intend to establish a forum of key stakeholders, including parents, advocates, representatives from schools, unions, patrons and interested parties, to deliver a high-level action plan on the next steps. This plan will be led by our stakeholders and by those with lived experience. It is intended that this forum will be independently chaired to ensure it can deliver the reforms required in a way that will bring cohesion to the system and provide stakeholder confidence in a robust and child-centred process that can be delivered to meet the needs of children and young people with additional needs. I will provide further information on this forum in due course.”
“This aligns with the previous policy advice published by the NCSE which challenges us to ensure the progressive realisation of a more inclusive education system. In that regard, a number of very significant developments will inform how a more inclusive education system can be developed. Following the review of the EPSEN Act, which was published last year, my Department has been finalising an implementation plan arising from that review. My Department has also been working to finalise a roadmap for inclusion that has been prepared by the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education on foot of a successful application to the EU's technical support instrument programme. This roadmap seeks to address the recommendations contained in the NCSE's policy advice on inclusive education.”
“For the vast majority of children and young people, this means they are supported to engage with education in mainstream classrooms every day. However, some children and young people with complex needs require much greater levels of support. My Department and the NCSE have worked very hard to ensure there are sufficient places in special classes and special schools in order that those students' needs are met. It is acknowledged that there is a significant body of work to do to ensure that greater opportunities are provided for inclusion for those students in particular. My Department is conscious, for example, of the obligations on us as a country arising from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.”
“These new classes should also facilitate schools to support students to access mainstream classes for large parts of the day, something that is already happening in many of our schools, particularly at post-primary level. The inclusive special classes are supported by management bodies from the post-primary sector. My Department and the NCSE met with special education advocacy groups and parent representative bodies to discuss these new inclusive special classes last week and a further engagement is planned for tomorrow. I ask schools that are opening new special classes to progress now to run admissions processes and offer places to students. My Department's policy has long been to ensure that children's needs are met in the most inclusive school environment possible.”
“As of last week, the NCSE had sanctioned 432 new special classes, a number of months ahead of last year. Utilising the additional funding secured at Cabinet, my Department and the NCSE will work to ensure that further new special classes can be confirmed as soon as possible. These new special classes will be mainly made up of regular special classes and some new inclusive special classes. These new inclusive special classes, five of which were announced last week, will receive the same level of resources and funding as regular classes and can support more children and young people to attend their local school with their peers.”
“This money will fund SETs, additional SNAs, increased capitation, access to school transport for children in special education settings and start-up grants for schools opening new special classes and inclusive special classes. For the balance of time remaining, I want to touch on two issues. The first one is to the forefront of the minds of many parents at present and that is the provision of school places for September. The second is plans for developing a more inclusive education system. My Department and the NCSE have engaged intensively on an ongoing basis over recent months with schools and stakeholders to plan for the provision of more special class and special school places for the coming school year. As Deputies will be aware, budget 2026 provided funding for up to 433 new special classes and up to 400 new special school places.”
“It is worth highlighting that demand for education services has grown significantly in recent years, with 38,000 additional students added to the system in the past five years. Today, one in four children, or around 240,000 children, require extra supports. This has led to a very large expansion in special education services. Around 30,000 require specialist provision in special classes or special schools. There has also been a major increase in the number of children with additional needs, both in Ireland and internationally. To ensure these children receive the supports they need and to meet increased demand, the Government this morning agreed to additional funding for the provision of special education services for children across the country.”
“However, it is important to note that any changes that I or my Department will bring forward in this regard will be made as a result of close consultation and co-design with the trade union Fórsa, the recognised representative body for SNAs, in addition to SNAs and relevant stakeholder groups. This consultation will be reflected in the three key documents relating to SNAs that I plan to publish shortly, documents which have been co-designed with SNAs working in schools across every community in the State. Many more developments and initiatives are under way to support our children and young people with special educational needs and the Minister of State will speak to some of these in his contribution.”
“Earlier this year, the Government also confirmed that there would be no reduction for any school in its allocation of SNAs for the coming school year. Separately, work is progressing to finalise a workforce development plan for SNAs, an SNA redeployment scheme and a new circular letter outlining the role of the SNA. Along with the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, I recently hosted a day-long engagement with SNAs and stakeholders on these issues and I want to see progress made on these matters as quickly as possible. I know that an alternative circular on the role of the SNA is in circulation, and I appreciate the bona fides of those who have drafted it.”
“We now have more than twice the number of special classes in our post-primary schools, going from 517 to 1,112. Some 16 new special schools have been opened and four more will open for the next school year, 2026-27. Special school enrolments have increased by 20% since 2020. More than 40% of special schools have benefited from new or upgraded buildings. We continue to invest in our special education teachers and SNAs, and there will be close to 22,500 SETs and approximately 25,000 SNAs in our schools by the end of the year. We are progressing the establishment of a new education therapy service, which will be introduced in 45 special schools to begin with. The first of these new therapists will be in post in the National Council for Special Education next month.”
“I welcome this evening’s debate. It is important that we continue to shine a light on the area of special education to ensure that our children and young people with additional needs are supported in school to help them achieve their full potential. I appreciate and accept that some families and young people believe the system is not doing enough for them, but supporting young people with special educational needs is a priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth, and for my colleagues across government. Our track record is testament to that. In 2026, more than €3 billion will be spent on special education. This is the highest ever annual provision and represents a 58% increase over the funding provided in 2020. Since 2020, we have almost doubled the number of special classes in our primary schools, going from 1,319 to 2,629.”
“Through the youth conference, Ireland will play a significant role in progressing the development of the next EU youth strategy so this is a very important deliverable for Ireland. The overarching priorities for Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the EU will be published by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade later this year. As Minister with responsibility for education and youth, I know there is no shortage of challenges facing our young people and facing the sector. There are great opportunities and vibrant and committed youth workers, volunteers and youth organisations. I assure the House I am committed to making sure the area is funded and that we work together. My door is open for ideas. I have listened to the Senators today and I thank them for their very constructive and informative contributions.”
“Ireland will also host the EU youth conference and the Directors General for Youth meeting. The EU youth conference is the signature event in the EU youth dialogue process. This four-day event is the largest youth participation event in Europe and will be held in Dublin in September. Ireland's Presidency priority on youth policy will be the exploration of the theme of information and constructive dialogue with young people. This theme is youth goal 4 from the EU Youth Strategy 2019-2027, and was agreed across the Presidency trio of Ireland, Greece and Lithuania. Under this theme Ireland will continue to progress two Council conclusions on supporting young people to critically evaluate information and ensuring young people in Europe have access to safe places.”
“The Department is working in partnership with the National Youth Council of Ireland and youth sector stakeholders in preparation for the Presidency. The youth affairs unit in the Department will be responsible for progressing key matters on EU youth policy during the Presidency, including chairing the working party on youth throughout the Presidency. Ireland aims to deliver an ambitious work plan on the area of EU youth policy and this will include the progression of a revised EU youth strategy and consultation with youth delegates on key issues affecting young people in Europe. The area of youth policy is considered a national competency by the EU. This means that the EU does not develop legislation in this policy area and it is for each member state to decide on how it develops and implements its youth policy.”
“In addition, the Department provides funding to the youth sector to support the delivery of volunteer-led, universal youth work. These include the volunteer activation fund, the youth climate justice fund, Foróige’s Big Brother Big Sister mentoring programme and funding for NYCIl’s safeguarding, youth health, youth arts, and equality and intercultural programmes. The Department also provides core funding to Gaisce, the President's Award, and to Léargas to support the implementation of the youth aspect of Erasmus+. As Senators will know, we are nearing Ireland’s tenure of the Presidency of the European Union and the EU Youth Week 2026 is taking place from 24 April to 1 May. This is a timely moment to outline that youth policy will be a prominent feature of the forthcoming Presidency of the EU.”
“Other targeted youth work programmes include the targeted youth employability support initiative, which plays a vital role in equipping young people aged between 15 and 24 who are not in education, employment or training with the confidence, soft skills and practical competencies needed to progress into further education, training or employment. In terms of universal services, through the youth services grant scheme, the Department provides funding to 35 national youth organisations. This scheme funds the effective delivery by national youth organisations of quality youth services that support young people’s social and personal development. It also funds organisations such as the National Youth Council of Ireland, which provides support to the overall work of the wider youth sector.”
“To focus a little on some of the specifics of Government investment, the UBU Your Place Your Space scheme, which I mentioned earlier, supports young people who are identified as marginalised, vulnerable or at risk of not flourishing. UBU provision was complemented last year by the summer holiday meals pilot programme, in line with the Government's wider commitment to end child poverty. The aim of the pilot was to provide a hot or substantial meal to young people at risk of not having access to a meal over the summer period. Over 3,200 young people availed of that scheme and plans are being made for the continuation of the pilot this year.”
“The UBU scheme came into operation on 1 July 2020 with the first full year of operation of the scheme in 2021. Funding provided under the UBU scheme has increased from €41.8 million in 2021 to €54.5 million in 2026, which is an increase of €12.7 million or 30.4%. This year the UBU scheme will fund 258 targeted youth services across 16 ETBs that co-ordinate delivery of funding to the UBU services in their local ETB areas. Ten new UBU services were established in 2025. Given these developments, there are no plans to re-establish the young people’s facilities and services fund. My Department will continue to work with the sector and across government to best ensure that appropriate services, facilities and spaces are available for young people. This work will be enhanced by the interdepartmental and interagency group to be set up shortly.”
“I am also delighted with the success of the summer meals pilot programme that was introduced last year. I said earlier that I agree with much of what has been said here today. I welcome that the contributions of Senators to the debate clearly demonstrate the high esteem in which the youth work sector is held. However, I will address some parts of the motion directly. As many in this House are aware, following a value for money and periodic review of youth funding programmes in 2014, a decision was taken to consolidate three existing targeted youth funding schemes, including the young people’s facilities and services fund, into a single targeted youth funding scheme. This resulted in the creation of the UBU Your Place Your Space scheme, which is the largest youth services scheme funded by the Department of Education and Youth.”
“Recently the Department published its NDP capital programme. This includes a dedicated annual allocation of €4 million in youth capital funding for each year from 2026 to 2030. Significantly, this view of the future availability of capital over the medium term provides scope to plan for more strategic capital projects and purchasing in the youth sector over the period of the programme. Ongoing increases to current funding in recent years, from €68.4 million in 2008 to €90.1 million in 2026, represent an overall growth of 31.74% and allow us to invest across an array of programmes, both universal and targeted, and to tailor our targeted supports to address areas of particular need. I am delighted that the ten new UBU services established in late 2025 will be fully operational for the calendar year 2026.”
“My officials have been working to identify areas of synergy, including improving linkages in relation to, for example, DEIS schools, as evidenced in the recently published DEIS and DEIS plus plans for Traveller and Roma young people in line with the Traveller and Roma education strategy and the school completion programme, to name but a few. In terms of financial investment, in 2026 core current funding of €90.1 million will support existing youth services and youth organisations while also enabling the expansion of both targeted and universal services for young people. This represents an increase of €4.5 million over 2025 funding levels. In addition, €4 million in capital funding will be available in 2026. This funding increase brings the overall core current and capital funding available to €94.1 million.”
“We see the non-formal and formal education sectors not as stand-alone entities but as complementary areas of work that will allow us to support a child, and later a young person, throughout their life in a way that takes account of their life inside and outside of school. More specifically, youth work provides non-formal, voluntary and relationship-based learning that augments formal education by addressing the social, emotional and developmental needs of young people. I regard youth work and education as natural allies. Both of them aim to support young people's development, learning and active participation in society, albeit through different methods and spaces. Moreover, youth work is an educative process that complements the Department’s brief and ambition around social inclusion.”
“The engagement structures being established to support the implementation of the Opportunities for Youth strategy will reinforce this relationship and ensure that young people and sectoral interests will have a clear mechanism for contributing to national decision-making. The national youth sector reference group will comprise young people, youth workers, funded youth organisations and ETB representatives. The interdepartmental and interagency group will bring together those Departments and bodies that provide funding or interact with the youth sector with a view to developing a whole-of-government vision as well as improving coherence and complementarity across schemes. Within my own Department, the transfer of youth functions into my Department opens particular opportunities for effective collaboration.”
“In recognition of the crucial role played by volunteers in running clubs and groups up and down the country, we are supporting national youth organisations to develop additional volunteer capacity through the volunteer activation fund. There is a need for wider recognition of youth workers and volunteers, and to celebrate what they do. Part of my Department’s response to this was the inaugural Oíche na hÓige, or Youth Night, which took place last year. This gave young people a chance to open their doors to the wider community and to showcase what their clubs and services mean to them. My Department works closely with the youth organisations, young people and the 16 education and training boards to ensure the good practice in youth work that Ireland is known for is further developed and supported.”
“I thank our youth workers and employers for the high level of participation in the workforce survey process which took place. The analysis of responses is extremely useful in informing the strategy development. Consultations are scheduled to take place in multiple locations around the country during May and June to engage further with youth workers and employers and to build on the data available through the youth workers and employers survey. We continue to support the national youth organisations with substantial funding under the youth services grant scheme, in addition to the funding we provide to support local clubs and groups through the local youth club grant scheme.”
“I have been very inspired by the volunteers, youth workers and young people I have met since taking up this role and I look forward to engaging further with them. One cannot help but be struck by the extraordinary dedication of youth workers and the impressive young people engaging in the services. I also appreciate the sheer diversity of the sector, both in the range of services and offerings available to young people and the range of young people who benefit. I am also very pleased that young people and youth organisations are included at the centre of the education convention. We are progressing a workforce development strategy in recognition of the need to support the workforce and ensure they can continue to provide high-quality, accessible and inclusive youth work opportunities for our young people.”
“The Department has received significant input already from the sector on the draft plan and I intend to finalise and publish it soon. Meanwhile, the important next step is the establishment of engagement structures for Opportunities for Youth, which is advancing well and which I will return to in a moment. A defining characteristic of the youth work sector is that services are responsive to the interests, needs and concerns of young people, and young people are involved in shaping the services they attend. Youth workers and volunteers are highly skilled, as has been said here, in connecting with young people where they are at and in developing relationships built on mutual trust that empower young people to be confident in having their say and being, or developing into, young adults and citizens.”
“In partnership with the youth sector, a new set of actions will be developed for the period 2027 to 2028. The strategy was informed by extensive consultations with young people and other stakeholders, which is reflected in its scope and ambition. Since its publication, the Department and the sector have progressed the strategy's 18 actions for delivery, some of which I will speak to shortly. We acknowledge that there have been delays in the publication of an implementation plan to support the strategy. As this House is aware, the youth affairs function transferred to my Department in May 2025. Considerable work has been done to build on the existing implementation work but also to develop a plan for publication to capture this work.”
“Along with initiatives across a wide range of areas including education and training, health, employment, creativity and sport, and tackling poverty and disadvantage, it forms part of a broader framework that prioritises and advances young people's rights and well-being. This commitment to ensuring that young people’s needs and rights are reflected across all policy areas is a key principle of Young Ireland, the national policy framework for children and young people, under which the sectoral policy Opportunities for Youth sits. Opportunities for Youth, the national strategy for youth work and related services, was published in September 2024. It sets out three overarching strategic objectives and 18 actions for delivery between 2025 and 2026.”
“Youth work services deliver high-quality youth work and non-formal developmental opportunities to young people aged ten to 24 across Ireland each year, with approximately 450,000 having participated in 2024. The aim is to support young people to develop their personal and social skills to reach their full potential. Approximately 2,000 youth workers and 40,000 volunteers support young people in their youth services and youth clubs nationally. I have listened carefully to the Senators here in the Seanad today and there is a lot that we agree on. Supporting our youth work is a critical aspect of what we do as a Government to support young people.”
“I thank Senators for the opportunity to be here in the Seanad today to talk about youth work and the Government's ongoing commitment and investment in this important sector. Youth services are a safe place where young people, with the support of youth workers, are able to reach their full potential and positively shape their own lives and futures. This Government and my Department are committed to supporting youth work services, youth organisations and volunteer-led youth clubs to ensure that there are high-quality, inclusive and accessible opportunities for all young people throughout the country, including in rural areas. This year, over €94 million in funding has been allocated for youth services current and capital expenditure in my Department.”
“We have begun accepting applications for supports for survivors of abuse in residential institutions such as industrial schools and reformatories. To ensure our education system continues to deliver world-class outcomes, we launched the national conversation on education and the national convention on the future of education. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for children, young people, parents, educators and wider society to help Ireland's educational system for decades to come. I could go on to speak about the €7.55 billion in capital investment. I have full confidence in this Government.”
“These will have a real impact on our education system, help students and young people and support teachers and school staff. I will inform the House of what my Department has been doing over the past number of months. On special education, we announced the opening of four new special schools and detailed the roll-out of the new education therapy services which will see therapists working with children, teachers and SNAs in our special schools. To help tackle educational disadvantage, we announced the biggest ever investment in a single year, of €48 million, in the new DEIS strategy and the DEIS plus scheme, which includes targeted supports for 121 schools with the highest level of educational disadvantage.”
“At no point over the past week did any member of Sinn Féin speak about the impact the blockades had on ordinary people - sick people trying to get to hospital appointments, workers trying to get to work, families visiting relatives or business owners losing customers. Instead, they spoke about how the Government was not doing enough. Not once did they criticise the blockades which caused such misery to people across this country. Their response today is to table a no confidence motion in a Government working hard every day to deliver on commitments we made to the Irish people. Since being appointed as Minister for Education and Youth last November, I have been working with the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Moynihan, and delivered a number of important programme for Government commitments.”
“The invitation from my Department for a detailed and comprehensive proposal for a teacher relocation scheme addressing the matters raised in the Department's previous responses remains in place.”
“A national relocation scheme for teachers is a proposal worth pursuing, but it requires careful consideration as it is a significant undertaking. There needs to be further collaborative work on this due to the complex nature of the education sector, with the many factors outlined in the Department's correspondence to be considered. The Department has not received an updated proposal in line with the response issued to the TUI in April 2024 and no proposal is currently being considered. It is essential that there is alignment between unions and management bodies in order to progress this proposal. I thank the TUI officials for their work on this proposal. I encourage them to engage with other relevant stakeholders on the matter.”
“The key purpose of the pilot voluntary redeployment scheme is to assist the Department to achieve the objective of redeploying all surplus permanent teachers.”
“There is a range of issues to be considered, including the application process, dispute resolution, seniority and the impact on other redeployment schemes. Further correspondence was received from the TUI on this matter in February 2024, with a reply issuing from the Department in April 2024. The reply from the Department acknowledged that some of the issues raised in the TUI's original correspondence had been addressed. The reply also highlighted key areas that remained to be addressed, including engaging with other stakeholders in the sector to agree a proposal. It should be noted that an existing voluntary redeployment pilot, distinct from the relocation scheme proposed by the TUI, is in operation.”
“This proposed relocation scheme may be beneficial for those who are commuting considerable distances, as the Senator has highlighted, and for the environment more generally. However, a number of challenges are apparent. Officials from my Department met with TUI representatives in November 2023. An overview of the proposal was presented at the meeting by the TUI and a discussion followed. The proposal was subsequently considered by my Department and a reply, based on the discussions and the report received, issued to the TUI. The proposal could impact teachers across both the primary and post-primary sectors. With this in mind, the TUI was invited to engage with other teacher unions and management bodies to develop a jointly agreed proposal on a relocation scheme.”
“This analysis found that over 98% of allocated teaching posts were filled nationwide and, as of November 2025, there were 0.7 unused allocations at post-primary level. Teacher attrition remains low, with fewer than 3% resigning or retiring annually, which is one of the lowest rates in the OECD. The Department received a report from the Teachers Union of Ireland, TUI, in March 2023 proposing a national relocation scheme for teachers. The scheme would allow teachers to identify preferred locations for relocation through a portal and potentially swap positions with teachers in those areas. This is distinct from a redeployment scheme, which is designed to move surpluses in the system.”