2025

Policy on Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht

 

The Department of Education and Youth is currently progressing the development of a new policy for Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht. A comprehensive public consultation process was conducted to gather the views of stakeholders, including young people, parents and guardians, education professionals, education stakeholders and Irish-language organisations. Some key themes that emerged from the consultation were:

• increasing the number of students receiving their education through Irish
• provision of Irish-medium schools
• teacher supply and education
• supports for schools
• provision of Irish-medium teaching and learning resources
• inclusion
• supports for parents.

It is expected that the policy will be published in autumn 2025. 

The policy on Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht will build on the achievements of the Policy on Gaeltacht Education, which has been providing supports to strengthen Irish-medium educational provision in Gaeltacht language-planning areas since its implementation in 2017.

 

 

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying

 

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was launched on 1st December 2022. Cineáltas provides a collective vision and a clear roadmap for how the whole education community and society can work together to prevent and address bullying in schools. It incorporates each of the nine components of UNESCO’s Whole Education Approach to prevent and address bullying.

The Implementation Plan for Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was published on 10th April 2023 and committed to implementing each of the 61 actions contained in Cineáltas within a five-year period. Implementation of Cineáltas is well advanced –The 2023 Cineáltas implementation report advises that 56 of the 61 actions have been commenced with 5 of those actions fully completed. The first Cineáltas Implementation Report was published on 2^nd July 2025. The 2024 Implementation Report will be published shortly.

In September 2024, the Cineáltas Showcase and Sharing of Best Practice Event took place in Croke Park. 17 schools showcased what they have done to prevent and address bullying behaviour. Individuals and groups from 10 schools were recognised at the event for the work they have done to spread Cineáltas in their schools. A video of the event was sent to all schools during Anti-Bullying Week in November 2024.

Throughout 2024, and especially from September onwards, the Inspectorate undertook a review of its monitoring processes for anti-bullying checks within inspection models. The purpose of this review was twofold: to support schools in implementing their Bí Cineálta procedures and embedding new strategies to prevent and address bullying; and to ensure that the Inspectorate could apply consistent, standardised checks across all schools, even where the level of implementation varied at school level depending upon their date of adoption of the procedures. In November 2024, the inspectorate engaged with children and young people, parents and school staff to seek their views in relation to preventing and addressing bullying behaviour. The report is due to be published in September 2025 as part of the inspectorate’s annual report. In December 2024, the Minister approved the Promotion of Wellbeing in Schools Evaluation inspection model. The new inspection model was launched in Q1 2025.

During 2024, resources for school leaders were reviewed to include information on the Bí Cineálta, Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Primary and Post-Primary Schools. 2,342 school leaders attended online seminars on the updated procedures. During the 2024/2025 school year, Oide delivered training to two representatives from every school in the country, one of which was a school leader. 

During 2024, the department published resources for schools to support the engagement of all school staff with the Bí Cineálta procedures to prevent and address bullying behaviour. During the 2024/2025 school year all schools were able to avail of a half-day school closure to facilitate engagement of all school staff with the Bí Cineálta procedures. 

2024

Policy on Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht

The Department of Education is currently progressing the development of a new policy for Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht. It is intended that implementation of policy actions will commence during the 2024/25 school year. The policy aims to achieve the following key objectives:

• the provision of a framework for the delivery of high-quality Irish-medium education in Irish-medium primary and post-primary schools outside of the Gaeltacht
• increasing the proportion of children and young people attending Irish-medium schools
• exploring how opportunities for the establishment of Irish-medium schools can be increased as part of the patronage process
• developing a clear policy on the establishment and sustainability of Aonaid/Sruthanna (Irish-medium units/streams) in existing English-medium post-primary schools to strengthen Irish-medium education provision
• examining how the supply of teachers and other staff with a high standard of Irish can be increased to meet demand in Irish-medium education settings
• looking at ways to deepen community engagement around Irish-medium schools.

A comprehensive public consultation process, along with a review of national and international literature on Irish-medium and minority language education, were undertaken to inform the development of the policy.

The policy on Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht will build on the achievements of the Policy on Gaeltacht Education, which has been providing supports to strengthen Irish-medium educational provision in Gaeltacht language-planning areas since its implementation in 2017.

Languages Strategy

Languages Connect, Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017 – 2026 aims to increase and diversify the range of foreign languages taught and learned in the Irish Education System.  The strategy has four goals: 

• To improve Language Proficiency by creating a more engaging learning environment
  • To increase and diversify the uptake of languages learned and to cultivate the languages of the New Irish
  • To increase awareness of the importance of language learning to encourage the wider use of foreign languages.
  • To enhance employer engagement in the development and use of Trade Languages.

During 2023, the Department of Education undertook a review of the Languages Connect Strategy and an Interim Review Report and Implementation Plan to 2026 were published in March 2024:  gov – Languages Connect – Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026 (www.gov.ie) 

Key achievements identified in the Interim Review Report include:

• Introduction of four new Leaving Certificate subjects: Lithuanian, Mandarin Chinese, Polish and Portuguese from September 2020.
  • First examination of the four new Leaving Certificate language subjects in summer 2022 with 1,451 exam sits, increasing to 1,693 exam sits in summer 2023.
  • Publication of a new Primary Curriculum Framework, including foreign languages as part of the primary curriculum for the first time, for introduction on a phased basis from September 2025
  • Roll out of the “Say Yes to Languages” primary sampler module at primary level in 2020/21.  This is an eight week foreign languages module that primary schools can opt into.  Over 1,200 primary schools (approximately a third of primary schools) are participating in the programme in 2023/24 using 13 different foreign languages based on the schools resources and demographic.  The module will increase to 10 weeks in 2024/25.  The programme is informing developments and planning for the introduction of foreign languages as part of the primary curriculum.
  • Additional hours allocated to schools to support diversification of language provision
  • Funding has been provided to schools for foreign language books for libraries, for mobility/ school exchanges, for teacher upskilling, for summer camps,
  • A new Department of Education funded Higher Diploma in Spanish for teachers’ course in University College Cork.
  • Communities of Practice and other supports for in-service teachers were introduced.
  • #ThinkLanguages event for TY students which had participation of 15,000 students in 2023, providing an opportunity to promote languages within the school and to celebrate the languages and cultural diversity within the school community.
  • Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) was introduced in Transition Year (TY) in a number of schools and teachers trained in the use of the methodology.
  • A group of student language ambassadors was formed in 2019 to support peer-to-peer promotion of languages at student events

The second Implementation Plan to 2026 aims to continue the work underway to increase and diversify foreign language teaching and learning in the Irish Education System.  A key focus will be the introduction of foreign languages as part of the primary curriculum from 2025/26.

Implementation of the strategy is overseen by the Foreign Languages Advisory Group (FLAG) comprising representation from a range of key stakeholder bodies.

Standardised Tests

Standardised testing in Ireland is implemented on an annual basis in 2nd, 4^th and 6^th classes. English-medium schools are required to implement standardised testing in English reading and Mathematics and Irish-medium schools are required to implement standardised testing in Irish reading, English reading and Mathematics. The standardised tests are used to measure a child’s reading and mathematical achievement, and to determine children’s progress in those areas.

The aggregate results are submitted to the school boards of management and reported to the Department of Education they’re used for evaluation purposes and to identify students who need additional support. The Department of Education does not collect assessment information on individual students, publish the data of individual schools or enable the data to be used for the compilation of league tables.

Department of Education Digital Strategy for Schools

The successor strategy to the Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020, the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027, was published by the Department of Education in April 2022 and has at its core the aim of empowering schools to further embed digital technologies across their teaching, learning and assessment.  It sets out how the development of digital skills are supported in schools and builds on the key achievements under the previous strategy.  

Key to this strategy is that all learners are given the opportunity to use digital technologies in their learning to reach their full potential and provide them with the necessary digital skills needed for an increasingly digital world. 

The strategy is underpinned by an investment of €200m to support its implementation, committed to under Ireland’s National Development Plan (NDP). The first tranche of €50m issued to all recognised primary and post-primary schools in late 2021.   

Minister Foley announced €50 million in further grant funding in April 2024. This funding is being provided to schools to help them continue to embed the use of digital technologies in their teaching, learning and assessment and represents the second tranche of ICT funding under the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027. 

Additionally, further Funding of €50m secured as part of Ireland's National Recovery and Resilience Plan under the NextGenerationEU Recovery and Resilience Facility issued to all recognised schools in the free education scheme to support learners at risk of educational disadvantage through the digital divide in late 2021. 

Addressing Disadvantage

DEIS (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools), the Action Plan for Educational Inclusion, first published in 2005, remains the Department of Education and Skills' policy instrument to address educational disadvantage. It focuses on addressing and prioritising the educational needs of children and young people from disadvantaged communities, from early childhood through second-level education.

Enhancing attendance, progression, retention and attainment are central elements of DEIS. Interventions focus on a school action plan with a concentration on literacy and numeracy from an early stage; strong links between the home, school and community; strong links between schools working co-operatively; and added value from links between education and other services.

Among the key issues and needs addressed by DEIS are:

• Improved identification of disadvantage enabling resources to be targeted more effectively;
• Targeted reductions in pupil teacher ratios and additional non-pay allocations for schools based on level of disadvantage;
• Access to additional literacy/numeracy supports and programmes;
• Access to Home/School/Community Liaison and School Completion Programme (SCP) services;
• Enhancing research and evaluation of outcomes.

 

Literacy and Numeracy & Digital Literacy Strategy

Ireland’s Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy 2024-2033: Every Learner from Birth to Young Adulthood, was launched in May 2024 and seeks to extend and build on the ambition and achievements of the previous strategy Literacy and Numeracy for Learning and Life: The National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020.

The strategy is set across all stages of the learner's journey from early learning and care (ELC) to post-primary school. It aims to promote the development of essential literacy, numeracy, and digital literacy skills, knowledge, and dispositions including successfully navigating an ever-evolving digital world.

It sets out objectives under five key pillars:

Pillar 1: Enabling parents and communities to support learners’ literacy, numeracy and digital literacy

Pillar 2: Supporting the professional practice of early years educators, childminders and teachers

Pillar 3: Supporting leadership in early learning and care and in the school system

Pillar 4: Improving the learner experience through curriculum, pedagogy and assessment

Pillar 5: Supporting diverse learners to achieve their potential

The implementation of the strategy will span a period of ten years, from 2024 to 2033, supported by two implementation plans. The first implementation plan published alongside this strategy sets out the objectives and associated actions for the next five years.

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was launched by the Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD on 1st December 2022. Cineáltas provides a collective vision and a clear roadmap for how the whole education community and society can work together to prevent and address bullying in schools. It incorporates each of the nine components of UNESCO’s Whole Education Approach to prevent and address bullying.

The Implementation Plan for Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was launched by Minister Foley on 10th April 2023 and commits to implementing each of the 61 actions contained in Cineáltas within a five-year period.

Implementation of Cineáltas commenced in Q1 2023, and a number of actions have been progressed.

€5 million is being invested to pilot a programme of counselling supports for primary school students.

A new inspection model has been developed under Cineáltas to assess whether a school has appropriate strategies in place to promote wellbeing, prevent and address bullying, and promote a positive and inclusive school culture.

In advance of anti-bullying week in November 2023, all schools were given a Cineáltas flag. This flag acts as a symbol to remind the whole school community of the importance of kindness, respect, equality, and inclusion. The flag recognises the good work that schools are already doing and will do to prevent and address bullying and to promote equality, inclusion, diversity and wellbeing.

A new Junior Cycle SPHE/RSE specification was introduced in schools in September 2024 and the Senior Cycle specification has been published for consultation.

A post-graduate programme for SPHE/RSE post-primary teachers has commenced.

On 19th June 2024, Bí Cineálta: Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Primary and Post-Primary Schools was published. The ‘Bí Cineálta’ procedures are centred on a child rights-based approach and support a partnership approach where all members of the school community work together to prevent and address bullying behaviour.

The new procedures result from a review of the 2013 ‘Anti-bullying procedures for primary and post-primary schools. The procedures 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.

The Student Participation Unit was established in the Department of Education in April 2023. The unit promotes the participation of children and young people into the development and implementation of Department of Education policy.
An expert group, which includes student representation, has been established to advise the Department on how best to progress its work in this area.

Professor Laura Lundy, Professor of Education Law and Children’s Rights at Queen’s University who developed the Lundy Model of children’s participation, is chair of this expert group. The group is examining how the Department fulfils its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the National Strategy on Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-Making in respect of the participation of children and young people in the development of Department policies. As part of this work an extensive consultation process with children and young people has taken place. The report of the Expert Group report and the Department’s Implementation Plan is due to be published in October 2024.

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2023

Free primary schoolbooks scheme

As part of Budget 2023, over €50 million is allocated to provide free books to primary school children and young people within the free education scheme from September 2023.

The free primary school books scheme announced on Wednesday 22^nd March 2023, is a permanent measure and will benefit up to 558,000 pupils in approximately 3,230 primary schools, including over 130 special schools.

The free primary schoolbook scheme delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to extend the free school book pilot, currently in over 100 DEIS primary schools, as resources permit. 

The implementation of the free schoolbook scheme will build on the existing school book rental scheme which is available in the majority of primary schools and on the free school books pilot provided to over 100 primary DEIS schools over the past three school years.

The grant under the new scheme will issue to each recognised primary school in April. In the case of primary schools managed by ETBs, the funding will issue directly to the relevant ETB. Under the new free primary schoolbook scheme, €96 per pupil will be paid in line with validated pupil enrolment figures on 30 September 2022.

The basis of the grant funding provided is that it eliminates the overall cost of schoolbooks, workbooks and copybooks for parents. Parents must not be asked to purchase schoolbooks or workbooks or to make a contribution to the school towards the cost of these items.

Schools will continue to have autonomy to choose books that meet curricular requirements.

In recognition of the work required in schools associated with implementing this scheme, the Department of Education has put in place an administration support grant. The administration support grant will be paid separately to the schoolbook grant before the end of June

Detailed Guidance on the implementation of the scheme is published on gov.ie/primaryschoolbooks and has been made available to primary schools, including special schools, to ensure they have sufficient time to implement the new scheme in advance of the start of the 2023/24 school year.  The Guidance has been informed by the engagements with all relevant stakeholders. 

The Department of Education has engaged with all relevant stakeholders as to how the scheme will operate. These included: primary school management bodies, unions, the National Parents Council Primary, representatives of booksellers and schoolbook publishers, IBEC, Retail Ireland, the Small Firms Association, Barnardos and the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul.  The Department also engaged with a number of schools, including some of the primary schools who participated in the DEIS pilot free book scheme, to learn of their first-hand experience of operating a book rental scheme.

Schools already have obligations to the National Procurement Guidelines and the law which governs public procurement in Ireland when sourcing goods and services. The Schools Procurement Unit produced guidance in 2017 for schools on good procurement practices.

A full evaluation of the first year of implementation of the scheme will be undertaken by the Department in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, in order to inform the guidance, implementation, costs and efficiency of the scheme for future years.

Published material on Gov.ie website: gov.ie - Free Primary Schoolbooks Scheme (www.gov.ie)

NTRIS

There is a Programme for Government commitment, to be led by the Department of Children, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Youth to review the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy (NTRIS) and ensure that the successor strategy has a stronger outcomes-focused approach. The Department of Education is engaging with and supporting this. There is also a Programme for Government commitment to develop a national Traveller Education Strategy, and work is progressing on this.

STAR

Under NTRIS, the Supporting Traveller and Roma (STAR) pilot project in education was established in 2019 with the aim of improving attendance, participation and school completion in specific Traveller and Roma communities regionally. There are four pilot areas (Galway, Wexford, Dublin and Cork), and the team in each location is provided with additional resources to work with parents, children and young people, schools, Traveller and Roma communities and service providers to address the barriers impacting on Traveller and Roma attendance, participation and retention in education. It is intended that the pilot project will inform future policy initiatives to support children and young people from the Traveller and Roma communities in their education. There is a Programme for Government commitment to undertake an independent assessment of this pilot project. The evaluation has commenced and is expected to be completed in Q1 2024.

Curriculum Review and Redevelopment

Primary Curriculum Framework

The Primary Curriculum Framework , published in March 2023 sets out proposals for the redevelopment of the primary curriculum. The framework set out the vision; principles; key competencies; structure; approaches to learning, teaching, and assessment; and time allocations of the Primary School Curriculum. The framework also provides the blueprint for guiding the enhancement of primary and special education for the coming years.  It links with learning experiences provided through the themes of Aistear: The Early Childhood Curriculum Framework and connects with the subjects, key skills and statements of learning in the Framework for Junior Cycle. 

 

As the full redevelopment of the curriculum progresses, new curriculum specifications will be developed by the NCCA for the five curriculum areas, as set out below, and their associated subjects. These specifications will be available for the 2025/2026 school year:

• Language (updated to included Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) in stages 3 and 4 (third class to sixth class).
• Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education
• Wellbeing
• Arts Education
• Social and Environmental Education (History and Geography)

 

Primary Mathematics Curriculum 

The Primary Mathematics Curriculum was published in September 2023. The over-arching aim of the Primary Mathematics Curriculum is the development of mathematical proficiency. Mathematical proficiency encompasses conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, adaptive reasoning, strategic competence, and productive disposition. Importantly, all five aspects are interwoven and interdependent.

 

While much of ‘what’ children will learn remains unchanged, the new mathematics curriculum places a greater emphasis on enhancing ‘how’ children learn mathematics best. The new Primary Mathematics Curriculum sets out a fresh vision for children’s learning that is characterised by playfulness, creativity, challenge, risk-taking, and opportunities for reasoning and solving real-life problems. There will also be changes to the pedagogical approach’s teachers use with a stronger focus on mathematical processes. 

 

Digital Strategy for Schools

The Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 sets out the Department of Education’s policy approach on embedding digital technology across the curriculum and in all aspects of teaching, learning and assessment and builds on the achievements of the previous strategy.  The stated vision of the Digital Strategy is “to empower schools to harness the opportunities of digital transformation to build digital competence and an effective digital education ecosystem so as to develop competent, critically engaged, active learners while supporting them to reach their potential and participate fully as global citizens in a digital world”.

 

Similar to the STEM Education Policy Statement the Digital Strategy aims to ensure that all learners regardless of socio-economic background, gender or location are given the same opportunity to develop their digital skills.  The Implementation Plan for the strategy has been finalised and is awaiting publication. The Implementation Plan complements and reinforces the STEM Policy Statement to encourage broader participation and enhance STEM learning for all learners. This plan contains more detail in relation to particular actions and associated timelines to further support schools in this important area.

 

Bullying in Schools

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying

Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was launched by the Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD on 1st December 2022. Cineáltas provides a collective vision and a clear roadmap for how the whole education community and society can work together to prevent and address bullying in schools. It incorporates each of the nine components of UNESCO’s Whole Education Approach to prevent and address bullying.

The Implementation Plan for Cineáltas: Action Plan on Bullying was launched by Minister Foley on 10th April 2023 and commits to implementing each of the 61 actions contained in Cineáltas within a five-year period.

Implementation of Cineáltas commenced in Q1 2023, and a number of actions have been progressed.

€5 million is being invested to pilot a programme of counselling supports for primary school students.

A new inspection model has been developed under Cineáltas to assess whether a school has appropriate strategies in place to promote well-being, prevent and address bullying, and promote a positive and inclusive school culture.

In advance of anti-bullying week in November 2023, all schools were given a Cineáltas flag. This flag acts as a symbol to remind the whole school community of the importance of kindness, respect, equality, and inclusion. The flag recognises the good work that schools are already doing and will do to prevent and address bullying and to promote equality, inclusion, diversity and wellbeing.

A new Junior Cycle SPHE/RSE specification was introduced in schools in September 2024 and the Senior Cycle specification has been published for consultation.

A post-graduate programme for SPHE/RSE post-primary teachers has commenced.

On 19th June 2024, Bí Cineálta: Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Primary and Post-Primary Schools was published. The ‘Bí Cineálta’ procedures are centred on a child rights-based approach and support a partnership approach where all members of the school community work together to prevent and address bullying behaviour. 

The new procedures result from a review of the 2013 ‘Anti-bullying procedures for primary and post-primary schools. The procedures 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.

The Student Participation Unit was established in the Department of Education in April 2023. The unit promotes the participation of children and young people into the development and implementation of Department of Education policy.

An expert group, which includes student representation, has been established to advise the Department on how best to progress its work in this area. 

Professor Laura Lundy, Professor of Education Law and Children’s Rights at Queen’s University who developed the Lundy Model of children’s participation, is chair of this expert group. The group is examining how the Department fulfils its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the National Strategy on Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-Making in respect of the participation of children and young people in the development of Department policies. As part of this work an extensive consultation process with children and young people has taken place. The report of the Expert Group report and the Department’s Implementation Plan is due to be published in October 2024.

Admissions Policy in Schools

The Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, is an important piece of legislation which has introduced a more parent-friendly, equitable and consistent approach to how school admissions policy operates for the almost 4,000 primary and post-primary schools. All schools have drafted new admissions policies, which have been approved by the patron, following consultation with staff and parents of children who are attending the school.  The newly revised school’s admissions policy is published on the schools website. It is a key requirement of the act that parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available the pupil should be admitted.

The act is now fully operational and all the provisions have been commenced, these include;

• Sec 62 requiring schools that are not oversubscribed to admit all students who have applied for a place.
• Amendment of the Equal Status Act 2000 which removed, in the case of recognised denominational primary schools, the previous provision that permitted such schools to use religion as a selection criterion in school admissions.
• Waiting lists are banned, thus ensuring that parents who move in to a new area are not disadvantaged.
• All schools must publish their admissions policies, including details of their selection criteria.
• All schools must publish an annual admissions notice, detailing the dates the applications process takes place, including details of offers made the previous year if the school was oversubscribed.
• Charging of fees or seeking payment or contributions for an application for admission to a school or for the enrolment or continued enrolment of a student in a school are prohibited.
• Section 8 setting out the steps requiring a school to open a special class or classes where the National Council for Special Education has identified a need for such provision within an area
• The Education (Provision in Respect of Children with Special Educational Needs) Act 2022 further amended the Education Act of 1998 by providing for a shortened more streamlined section 37A process whereby the Minister can direct a school to make provision for children with special educational needs. The section 37A process is only used as a measure of last resort where additional provision is required in a specific location and efforts to secure that additional provision through engagement with schools has failed.
• The new act also streamlined Section 67 which provides for a situation where a child (with special needs or otherwise) cannot find a school place, and allows the National Council for Special Education or Tusla (Child and Family Agency) to designate a school place for the child.

Patronage of Schools

Irish society as a whole is in the process of major social, cultural and demographic change. One of the most complex and challenging aspects of reform in our school system is how best to deal with changes in school ethos and religious and moral education.  There are very strong opposing views on these matters and the Minister for Education & Skills is endeavoring to provide the most reasonable and inclusive reforms in this area. The Government is committed to progressing the development of a dynamic and innovative education system that reflects the diversity of twenty-first Century Ireland.

Since 2011, new schools are generally only established in areas of demographic growth. The Department uses a Geographical Information System (GIS) to identify where the pressure for school places across the country will arise. In order to plan for school provision and analyse the relevant demographic data, the Department divides the country into 314 school planning areas. The GIS uses data from a range of sources, including the Central Statistics Office, Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Department of Social Protection and the Department's own databases. With this information, the Department carries out nationwide demographic exercises at primary and post-primary level to determine where additional school accommodation is needed.

The patronage process for new schools is overseen by the New Schools Establishment Group (NSEG). This independent advisory group was set up in 2011 to advise the Minister on the patronage of new schools following its consideration of a report prepared by the Department on the applications received.

Once it has been established from the demographic exercises that a new school, primary or post-primary, is required to meet the demographic need in a school planning area, a separate process is conducted to establish who will run the school.

It is open to all patron bodies and prospective patrons to apply for patronage of a new school under the patronage process. Parental preferences for each patron, together with the extent of diversity currently available in the area, are key to decisions in relation to the outcome of this process. The patronage process also incorporates consideration of, and the potential for, Irish-medium provision.

Prospective patrons at either primary or post-primary level must show evidence of parental demand, from the area to be served, for the model of provision proposed.  Patrons and prospective patrons must therefore include a completed parental preference template as evidence of parental demand with each application for patronage. 

Following consideration of all of the above, the results of the assessment are incorporated in a report for consideration by the NSEG. The NSEG review the contents of the patronage assessment report and then compile a report of its recommendations for consideration and final decision by the Minister. 

Since the current arrangements were introduced in 2011, 30 new primary schools and 31 new post-primary schools have been established.