Education and Training Boards
Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-05
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Joe Conway (IND), Cultural and Educational Panel

I raise an urgent and deeply troubling matter concerning the abrupt discontinuation of English for speakers of other languages, ESOL, classes at Waterford and Wexford education and training board, ETB, just before the recent mid-term break. Students were informed the day before the break that they would not be returning to classes despite having enrolled with the understanding that tuition would run for a full academic year. Many of those affected are individuals under international protection or with refugee status in Ireland. Some students lost their classes after just ten weeks while others were discontinued after approximately 20 weeks of study. In all cases, learners were left without provision, clarity or an alterative pathway.
Under the International Protection Act 2015 and broader national integration policy, the State recognises the importance of facilitating access to education and integration supports for those granted protection. Language acquisition is central to integration. Without English, individuals face hindrance in accessing employment, participating meaningfully in community life, supporting their children in school or consolidating their independence.
If the State permits individuals to enter and remain in Ireland under international protection, it surely carries a responsibility to ensure that the structures necessary for integration are accessible and stable. Abruptly withdrawing language provision mid-year undermines that responsibility and destabilises some of the most vulnerable members of our community.
The consequences have been immediate and serious. Students have been left confused, distressed and feeling discarded. Many had structured childcare, transport and weekly routines built around these classes. Teachers had their hours dramatically reduced. Trust in publicly funded education provision has been damaged. The emotional impact on learners has been particularly concerning. Many have already experienced sudden upheaval and displacement, for example, people in Ukraine.
If budgetary pressures in one part of the further education and training, FET, system are resulting in the reduction of language supports for individuals under international protection, it raises serious concerns about equity and prioritisation. ESOL learners are among the most vulnerable participants in our educational system. Any reduction in their access to provision should be subject to transparency and public scrutiny. Waterford and Wexford ETB already had significant waiting lists for adults awaiting English-language education with 300-plus students reporting waiting for two years or more for a place, only for that place to be taken away in a cursory fashion.
This Commencement Matter seeks to establish whether ESOL provision has been reduced due to national funding pressures within the FET system; seeks to clarify whether apprenticeship expenditure overruns have resulted in reallocations, impacting adult literacy and ESOL programmes; seeks confirmation from SOLAS and the Department of further and higher education as to how ESOL capacity is being protected for learners under international protection; and advocates for the reinstatement of provision or equivalent alternative arrangements for those who enrolled in good faith for a full academic year. I am also very concerned about the wider funding decisions within the FET sector. I understand that apprenticeship provision has experienced significant cost pressures nationally. I am seeking to ascertain whether funding reallocations at a national level, through SOLAS and the Department of further and higher education, have impacted the level of ESOL provision available locally.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-03-05/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:44+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-03-05