81. Deputy Keira Keogh asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department is considering targeted incentives to attract and retain teachers in rural schools in County Mayo; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53691/26]

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.

As of November 2025, there were over 75,000 teachers employed in schools across Ireland and over 98% of allocated teaching posts were filled.

In County Mayo, 1.5% of allocations (17.3 posts) at primary level and 2% of allocations (14.6 posts) at post-primary level were unutilised.

Mayo, Sligo and Leitrim ETB post-primary schools had a vacancy rate of 2.8% (14.7 posts).

Teaching is an attractive profession, and there are a significant number of newly qualified teachers graduating annually. Over 3,600 newly qualified teachers registered with the Teaching Council in 2025 and CAO data shows a consistent demand for undergraduate ITE programmes. Salaries are competitive, currently starting at €45,379 (primary) and €46,948 (post-primary) and rising to €83,576 and €85,411 under the current pay deal. Teacher attrition remains low, with fewer than 3% resigning or retiring annually, one of the lowest rates in the OECD.

While the majority of allocated teaching posts are filled, certain schools experience ongoing challenges in recruiting teachers. To address teacher supply 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, and

- an over 30% increase in the number of teachers registered with the Teaching Council since 2017.

My Department has recently published revised arrangements for the award of a Contract of Indefinite Duration to teachers; teachers taking up their first contract in a viable post will be eligible for a permanent position after one year, subject to successful re-appointment through a competitive process.

Recently regulations were approved to allow teachers who qualified overseas to undertake their induction in the State and incremental credit is also available to teachers returning from abroad, depending on the teaching experience gained.

A number of measures have been introduced to address subject-specific teacher shortages at post-primary level:

- Upskilling programmes: free upskilling programmes for teachers are offered in high-demand subjects: Irish, French, politics & society, computer science, maths, physics and Spanish.

- STEM Bursary: a €2,000 annual bursary has been introduced for student teachers in STEM fields during the final two years of their undergraduate teacher education, with a requirement to complete at least 2 years of teaching post-qualification in a recognised post-primary school.

A comprehensive workforce plan for the education sector, a commitment under the Programme for Government, is in development. Additionally, a project focused on strategic workforce planning for teachers in Ireland, led by UNESCO and supported by the EU Commission, is developing recommendations for addressing the main factors affecting teacher supply in Ireland.

I am considering further measures to strengthen the teaching workforce and ensure that schools have the support needed to provide an excellent education for every student.