98. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she will be expanding the number of DEIS+ schools in Limerick; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53910/26]

Addressing educational disadvantage and ensuring that every child and young person can reach their full potential is a key priority for me as Minister for Education and Youth and for the Government. The new DEIS Plus scheme, which will commence this year and was launched as part of the DEIS Strategy to 2035, represents the most significant expansion of targeted supports since the establishment of DEIS. DEIS Plus is designed to provide enhanced, evidence-based supports to a small cohort of schools with the highest concentrations of children and young people at risk of educational disadvantage, identified through a refined data-based model that draws on a range of indicators associated with persistent and intergenerational disadvantage.

This approach ensures that additional resources are directed where they can have the greatest impact, and forms a core element of the wider €48 million full-year investment across both the DEIS Strategy and the DEIS Plus scheme. Approximately 30,000 children and young people attending DEIS Plus schools will benefit from these targeted supports.

Schools in the DEIS Plus scheme will receive strengthened, research-informed supports across wellbeing, attendance, engagement, guidance, leadership capacity, community partnerships and access to services, including the introduction of a new positive mental health and wellbeing initiative to support a whole-school approach to student wellbeing.

Any future expansion of the DEIS Plus scheme will be considered over the lifetime of the DEIS Strategy to 2035 and the availability of resources.