Educational Reform Dail Éireann — 2026-06-16 ============================================================ Neale Richmond (FG), Dublin Rathdown I am genuinely grateful to Deputy Dolan for raising this. It is even fortuitous that I get to give the response, albeit on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Naughton. The response I have been given is a constructive one, and while I will give it, I might add to it. It is clear to the Department of education that financial literacy and opportunities to develop it are embedded throughout the Irish school curriculum from primary to junior cycle and into senior cycle. This commitment is reflected in the National Financial Literacy Strategy 2025-2029, as well as in Ireland's Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy 2024-2033, which emphasise the importance of supporting financial literacy across all stages of learning. At primary level, the primary curriculum framework of 2023 identifies seven key competencies, including being mathematical, which encourages children to apply mathematical thinking in real-world situations such as those the Deputy referred to. The redeveloped primary mathematics curriculum of 2023 strengthens this further by including money as a stand-alone strand unit. This allows children to gradually build their understanding of money, its value, its uses and how to work confidently with notes and coins in meaningful contexts. I was doing this with my own six-year-old just the other night, although I do not know if she will be using notes and coins in the way that I was when getting pocket money. However, that is a different story. In the junior cycle, financial literacy is explicitly highlighted in statement of learning 14 of the framework for junior cycle, which focuses on students making informed financial decisions and developing strong consumer skills. The eight key skills of junior cycle, including being numerate, being literate, setting personal goals and making considered decisions, also contribute directly to financial literacy. Subjects, including mathematics, business studies, home economics as well as the ones mentioned by the Deputy, and the level 1 and level 2 learning programmes for students with general learning disabilities, provide structured opportunities for students to deepen their financial knowledge and skills. The redeveloped senior cycle, places a strong emphasis on key student competencies, including those linked to financial literacy. A transition year micro-module on financial literacy, developed by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA, supports students in exploring their financial habits and understanding the importance of being financially informed. Within leaving certificate subjects, financial literacy continues to be strengthened. The revised leaving certificate business specification helps students understand how business connects to their own lives while building financial and business literacy. The draft specification for leaving certificate home economics includes family resource management, where students learn about consumer empowerment, decision-making and managing household finances. The redevelopment of the mathematics and accounting specifications will further enhance students' numeracy and financial literacy skills. The new specification for life, community and work, formerly the leaving certificate vocational programme, LCVP, supports students in preparing for life beyond school. Through its two modules, me and my future and community and work, students learn how to make informed decisions as they plan for their future pathways. Beyond the formal curriculum, informal education also plays a significant role in developing students' financial literacy. The Department continues to work closely with a range of Departments, agencies and partners to support this work. Initiatives, such as maths week, money week, our money, our future and opportunities for students to connect with financial services providers in classroom learning help students build confidence in managing financial responsibilities both inside and outside school. I have rushed through that because I want to use my remaining time to focus on one aspect that is not directly used but one we might be able to lean into and one I would have had great experience of as Minister of State in the Department of Finance when working with the credit union movement, which is the heartbeat and the most trusted brand of so many communities. This is something that needs to be taken on a cross-departmental basis, and not only the Departments of education and finance, which is looking at the credit unions, in particular, as anchors. So many of the credit unions are active at transition year in secondary schools. It is they who are talking about saving for college, what sort of money might be needed for tools for an apprenticeship and those sorts of practical things. However, as we all know, not every credit union has the resources to do that, not every school has a transition year and not every school with a transition year has that relationship with a credit union. An informal pilot scheme is ongoing that addresses a lot of the issues the Deputy has raised. My question to him, which would also be asked by the Minister, Deputy Naughton, the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and probably the Tánaiste as well, is how we can mainstream that quasi-pilot scheme to address the very important issues we face. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-16/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:50+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-06-16