Time to transform primary and secondary education in Ireland – Labour

• Labour pledges to put education on the map 

Labour’s mission is the provision of an inclusive and genuinely free of charge secular system of State run education, rooted in our communities, where every child is treated equally.

Ireland must invest in tackling disadvantage and provide the support every child needs to meet their full potential in world class schools where staff are resourced, respected, and valued.

Speaking at the launch, Labour leader Ivana Bacik TD said the time has come to separate church and state once and for all:

“Ireland has the resources and Labour has the political will necessary to transform how we educate our children. In a modern and diverse society, we need to ensure our education system is fully inclusive, providing every child with an equal start in life.

“The Government target was to divest 400 schools by 2030, and it is nowhere near achieving that.

“We have seen a complete lack of ambition from Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael to make real structural reforms within our patronage system.

“Labour will hold a new National Convention on Education, to take place over thirty years on from that organised by Niamh Breathnach in 1993. Her initiative as Education Minister led to the passing of the landmark Education Act and many other reforms. Our proposed Convention will comprise a Citizens’ Assembly, with representation from children and young people, and will also include education stakeholders.

“Labour will implement an ambitious programme of patronage divestment from religious orders and patrons, to the patronage of multi-denominational bodies like Educate Together and the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). This programme will provide greater parental choice and will ensure that we recognise the growing diversity of our population. Our objective is to secure a State run school system, where religious instruction takes place outside of the school teaching day.”

Labour MEP Aodhán Ó Ríordáin said ending disadvantage in the classroom is crucial to achieving real fairness in society:

“Despite expansion of the DEIS programme, there are schools in our most disadvantaged communities that need extra support.

“Principals from schools in the most disadvantaged communities in Dublin have developed proposals that the government have failed to support. At a time when the teacher supply crisis is hitting DEIS schools hardest, we need to do more to support these communities.

“Labour proposes the introduction of a new DEIS+ cluster model as a focused stream of investment to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty and trauma in areas with long term socio-economic and education disadvantage.

“It will provide for clusters of multidisciplinary teams modelled on the City Connects programme so that each child can access the services or resources they need to succeed, thrive, and achieve their full potential complemented by staffed nurture rooms and an expanded teacher support service.

“More needs to be done across the country to give every child a fair start. Ireland has some of the largest class sizes in the EU and spends less on education than other developed nations.

“Labour has long campaigned to make education truly free and we will ban voluntary contributions and increase capitation grants to school as part of a suite of measures to fulfil the commitment of our constitution.

“We are also deeply concerned at the ongoing failure to vindicate the rights to education of children with additional needs. Labour will introduce an Autism Guarantee and put the resources in place and proper planning to ensure an appropriate mainstream school place is available for every child where needed.

As the crisis in school places and staffing worsens, Labour Kildare North candidate Cllr Angela Feeney said:

“Across Kildare, Dublin, Wicklow and other fast growing counties there is a dire shortage of secondary school places. Labour will address this by providing enough new classrooms and introduced a centralised application process.

“However even with new schools and classrooms we don’t have enough teachers. The quality of education provided by the State is being undermined by the massive recruitment crisis facing our schools.

“At both primary and second level unions have put forward concrete proposals to help resolve the crisis. The only response from the Department has been to highlight how many teachers are in the system, and the increased numbers that have been trained in recent years.

“The reality is that new graduates cannot afford to live where we need them to teach and feel their only option is to emigrate. A commitment is needed to address these issues whether through local bargaining or a bespoke staffing package.

“Figures released by the INTO show over 950 posts vacant at primary level. Similar problems are impacting on our secondary schools. Half of schools in Kildare, Dublin and Wicklow report unfilled teaching posts.

“Under our proposals, Labour will establish a teacher staffing taskforce to consider a broad range of issues including casualisation, pay scales and an incremental credit for those working as teachers abroad to encourage them to come home.

“By doing this we will be able to reduce class sizes to the European average (at primary level that’s a reduction from 1:23 to 1:20).

“As someone who has worked in education all my life, I know firsthand the issues facing the profession. And I know that there are solutions, with the political will. Labour has called for the development of key worker housing as a key measure to ensure public servants can live in our cities and growing towns so that public services can be adequately staffed.”

ENDS

Labour launched their education policy today focused on six key pillars of change:

1. Reformed inclusive education by separating church and state

1. • Hold a new National Convention on Education (just over 30 years on from the one held by Niamh Breathnach in 1993).
   • Provide incentives to schools that divest to multi-denominational patronage. (eg energy efficiency upgrades).

2. Tackling disadvantage 

2. • Introduce a DEIS+ cluster model for the most disadvantaged schools.
   • Review DEIS, increase resources and set continuously higher school standards for literacy and numeracy.

3. Making education genuinely free

3. • Ban voluntary fees and increase capitation grants.
   • Invest in bus places, free public transport for children and a bike to school scheme.
   • Provide a Universal Clothing and Footwear allowance and abolish exam fees.

4. Realising the rights of children with additional needs

4. • Introduce an autism guarantee to secure appropriate mainstream place for every child
   • Expand the Educational Therapy Support Service.
   • Invest in pathways to further and higher education and bridging services for school leavers with additional needs

5. World Class Schools and reducing class sizes

5. • Lower class sizes to the European average.
   • Plan to provide enough secondary school places and a centralised admission process.

6. Addressing the staffing crisis 

6. • Set up a Teacher staffing taskforce to address the issues causing the recruitment and retention crisis.
   • Develop key worker housing to support provision of public services in towns and cities

The document can be found at this link: https://labour.ie/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Labour-Education-Manifesto-2024.pdf