Written answer
School Admissions
The Minister cited new Irish-medium education policies and a taskforce assessing demand and expansion, but gave no guarantee of second-level places.
593. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Education and Youth whether her Department has put in place provisions to ensure that there is a place in an Irish-medium second level school for those who have attended an Irish-medium primary school. [65213/26]
Comment on this
The Programme for Government 2025, Securing Ireland’s Future, includes a commitment to establish Gaelscoileanna and Gaelcholáistí where there is demand and support parents choosing Irish-medium education for their children.
The Policy for Irish-Medium Education outside of the Gaeltacht was launched in November 2025. The policy sets out my department's vision that high-quality Irish-medium education will be available to all, in inclusive and multicultural educational settings. My department is committed to working with stakeholders to achieve that vision, and to make progress towards delivering on the commitments of the Programme for Government.
A key recommendation of this report was the establishment of a Taskforce on Models of Provision for Irish-medium Education, which commenced its work in November 2025.
The role of the taskforce is to provide a platform for collaboration between my department and key stakeholders to develop a pathway to increase provision of Irish-medium education nationally. The taskforce's work is expected to be completed by the end of the year. It will make recommendations to my department on areas such as the criteria for Irish-medium education provision, how to support schools transitioning to Irish-medium and mechanisms to facilitate expansion of provision.
My department's Primary School Survey, the largest of its kind ever undertaken in Ireland, was school specific and aims to assess parental demand and preferences for different types of primary school provision. Through the survey, my department has obtained clear information on the preferences of parents and guardians about the primary schools which their children currently attend, or will attend in coming years, on a number of important areas of primary school provision, including language of instruction (Irish or English). The survey will also provide a useful guide to inform both future primary and post-primary provision.