Youth Mental Health and Guidance Services in Secondary Schools: Motion [Private Members]
Seanad Éireann — 2023-06-21
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Eileen Flynn (IND), Nominated by the Taoiseach

I support the motion and understand the importance of career guidance counsellors, who have played an important role in my life, as a Traveller from a very disadvantaged and marginalised community. I wanted to say that before I get into my speech.
It seems to me that the lack of resources, despite the increase in the demand for the services of career guidance counsellors, has not been dealt with by this Government. I sit on the Joint Committee on Education, which has spoken to career guidance counsellors and teacher unions numerous times. The demand for career guidance teachers is there. We expect too much off our career guidance teachers and much of the time we expect ordinary teachers, who are not qualified as career guidance teachers, to do the work of career guidance counsellors.
There are an awful lot of gaps in the system when it comes to children and young people in direct provision, those from the Traveller community and other marginalised communities. While the motion is extremely important, there are still major gaps that we need to look at in the Upper House and the Lower House. We must bring about meaningful changes within our education system. It is not just about throwing money in and looking for services. A friend once said to me that no service is made up in the same way as concrete, which is the combination of water and bricks. It is all about the embedded support we are able to give our teachers and, most importantly, our students.
I could go on to talk about the brilliant work of our career guidance teachers. As I have said, they are vital in our schools. A career guidance teacher was a lifeline to me, as a member of the Traveller community. Shortly after my mother died, the Traveller transport assistance was cut. I remember the career guidance teacher went above and beyond by bringing me and my twin sister home from school every day. Some mornings, she came to collect us at the site. That is an example of what career guidance teachers can do.
We need to invest. This motion is a step in the right direction but an awful lot more needs to be put in place for the teachers who are going above and beyond and working extra hours with very little support, as I have said. I know that because I sit on the education committee. This motion does not address mental health because career guidance teachers are not counsellors. We need to be clear around that. It is one thing I will say today. One of the unions' requests for last year's budget was that we would put a county councillor into every school. Excuse me, I mean a psychological counsellor. I was looking at Senator Boyhan when I said "county councillor".

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2023-06-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:52:02+00:00
Sitting date: 2023-06-21