Educational Disadvantage
Dail Éireann — 2026-05-06
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Michael Moynihan (FF), Cork North-West

I thank both Deputies for raising the issue. On a serious note, I always admire when constituency colleagues come together on issues of education. It shows the depth of knowledge and commitment they have to education and I have seen that in several constituencies, so I compliment them on that.
Addressing the education disadvantage and ensuring every child and young person can reach their full potential is key for both me and my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Naughton. We look at this and the supports we give to children as leading to better outcomes for their lives individually, as well as for society. The DEIS plus scheme represents a significant expansion of the targeted education supports. It is designed to provide enhanced, evidence-based support to 121 schools with the very highest concentration of children and young people experiencing persistent and intergenerational disadvantage.
Approximately 30,000 children and young people nationally will benefit from inclusion in the scheme.
The Deputies raised issues in relation to schools in disadvantaged areas of Drogheda not being included in the scheme. At the outset, I acknowledge the very real challenges faced by the school communities in Drogheda, as well as the commitment of the school leadership, teachers and the entire school community who work continuously to support children and families facing complex and entrenched difficulties. It is important to stress that a school not being included in DEIS does not imply that disadvantage does not exist within that school's community.
The DEIS plus schools were identified using a rules-based model built on nationally available pupil-level administrative data. This model draws on a range of indicators associated with persistent and intergenerational disadvantage, including small-area disadvantage, lone parents, unemployment, Traveller or Roma identity and children living in State-funded emergency accommodation. These indicators are applied consistently across all schools using enrolment data from the past three years. In order to be included under the model, schools must demonstrate both a level of disadvantage significantly higher than the national average and a high concentration of pupils from very or extremely disadvantaged areas.
Schools can experience significant levels of challenge and need but still fall outside the thresholds required for inclusion in this very targeted scheme. A school-led application or self-reporting process would introduce inconsistencies and inequality, which is why a data-driven and national comparative approach is essential. The OECD review of the DEIS identification model highlighted the strengths of this approach, noting that it is multidimensional, general data protection regulation compliant and places no administrative burden on the schools.
The Department also recognises that some schools operate in particularly difficult local environments, where community pressures can impact well-being, engagement and learning. While such pressures are often well understood locally, they are not always captured in the datasets that can be fairly and consistently applied across the entire school system. A rules-based national model must consider all schools on the same basis; it cannot substitute locally known challenges for data that are not available or comparable nationwide.
When applied to schools in Drogheda, the model reflected disadvantage but not at the level of concentration required for inclusion in DEIS plus. However, DEIS schools in Drogheda continue to receive significant supports. DEIS grant allocations have been recalculated under the new model, with a number of schools receiving increased funding, and all continue to have access to a full home school community liaison co-ordinators. Additionally, three schools in Drogheda benefit from further staffing supports under the DEIS urban band 1 enhanced capitation rate, as recommended by the Geiran report, providing additional teaching capacity and stability. This measure has been recently extended and all schools have been notified. The appeals process for schools not included in DEIS plus is now open, with full details available on the Department of education's website.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-06/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:54+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-06