McEntee details measures to tackle 'hugely alarming' school absenteeism
A strengthening of current laws and the rollout of a multimedia ad campaign are among the measures contained in a new to tackle worrying rates of school absenteeism.
Over 110,000 primary and 65,000 secondary students missed 20 or more days of school in the 2022/2023 school year, which education minister Helen McEntee has described as "hugely alarming".
"Unfortunately, the stark reality is that in recent years we have seen a decline in regular attendance, and a rise in the number of children and young people missing a very concerning number of school days," said Ms McEntee, who on Monday is announcing a comprehensive suite of targeted and universal actions to improve school attendance.
Among the key initiatives being introduced is the 'Anseo' programme, which is a new evidence-based framework to help schools analyse and respond to attendance data, which will be rolled out in 60 schools following a successful pilot.
A national multimedia campaign, launching in September, will promote the importance of regular school attendance to students, parents, and guardians and there will be continued investment in the Educational Welfare Service, including expansion of educational welfare officer capacity.
Ms McEntee also plans to revise the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 to strengthen statutory supports for young children, including bringing children under the age of six attending primary school within its scope to ensure earlier intervention.
Data published by Tusla in its latest annual attendance report shows concerning levels of student absence with 6.86m days lost in primary schools (8.6% of total days) and 5.56m days lost in post-primary schools (11.4%). Deis schools and special education settings recorded particularly high rates of absenteeism.
Ms McEntee said: 'School attendance is linked with attainment and with completing school. While there is excellent practice in schools to support children and young people to attend, we must listen to the data from Tusla and redouble our efforts."
Under the plan a national attendance conference will be held in early 2026 to share best practices and promote whole-system engagement, and a scoping project to deliver real-time attendance data for better decision-making and intervention will be rolled out.
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Helen McEntee on her Leaving Cert: ‘Let's put it this way - I wasn't aiming for 500 or 600 points'
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Fitness-to-teach panel considers ruling on former principal who stole more than €100,000 from school
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He said the crimes, as outlined in the case, were 'egregious acts of violence in a sacred place of pilgrimage'. He told Gallagher that his crimes were 'deceitful' and 'premeditated' and that he placed them in the mid-range for such offences and which merited a sentence of seven years before mitigation. In mitigation, he noted an early plea, the fact that the accused had no previous convictions, that he appeared to be remorseful and ashamed of his actions. Judge Aylmer also noted that Gallagher had undertaken 24 counselling sessions, that he was fully cooperative and that he had been ostracised in the local community. Taking the totality factor into account and that all sentences will run concurrently, Judge Aylmer said he was reducing the overall sentence to one of five years. He then added that with regard to all efforts to encourage rehabilitation and the fact that it needs to be encouraged, he suspended the final twelve months of that sentence, meaning Gallagher will serve four years in prison. He is also to go under the supervision of the Probation Services for 12 months. Gallagher, from Rathanlacky, Dunkineely pleaded to a total of seven charges against five different women at the holy island on the shores of Lough Derg. He pleaded to six charges of sexual assault at St Patrick's Purgatory. These offences are contrary to Section 2 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990, as amended by Section 37 of the Sex Offenders Act 2001. He also pleaded that in the same period and location, he did attempt, by inviting, inducing, counselling or inciting a child to sexual touching. This offence is contrary to Section 4 Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act, 2017. The victims, who cannot be named to protect their identity, ranged in age from their early teens to more mature women in their later years. All the offences took place in 2022 when Gallagher worked both as a maintenance man at the retreat, as well as driving a boat taking pilgrims to and from the island. Lured victims by asking for help Barrister for the state, Ms Fiona Crawford, BL and investigating Garda Joanna Doherty outlined the details of the incidents. Statements given to gardaí by the victims told how Gallagher had approached them, asking them to come into a laundry room as he needed help fixing various machines. The statements outlined how the unsuspecting women were asked to reach behind them into the machines while Gallagher fixed a 'pipe'. The women thought they were holding a pipe, but instead they were gripping the accused man's penis. On one occasion, Gallagher told one of his victims to twist the pipe like she was 'revving a motorcycle'. 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He claimed the woman had got up and left for no apparent reason, and he had been left nervous and embarrassed by the incident. He later admitted the offences and entered a guilty plea. Victim impact statements from the women were read out in court, while two young women chose to read out their own statements. Victims feel vulnerable and intimidated One young woman fought back tears as she told how despite being the victim, she felt ashamed and disgusted by what had happened and often thinks about if she could have stopped this from happening to other women. She added that she often thinks about Gallagher's son and that she prays that he is safe. An older victim said she feels vulnerable and intimidated by what had happened and that she is sorry that she did not speak up sooner, but was afraid that people would laugh at her or not believe her. Another victim told how she was a student but failed her exams because she became depressed after Gallagher's assault on her. She later completed her exams and was proud of herself and was determined not to allow her attacker to ruin her life further. She said she still feels he stole something from her. A teenage victim said she has been forced to attend counselling because of anxiety and that she is now always on edge and simply cannot trust men. She decided not to come to court, as she feared that seeing Gallagher again would trigger her anxiety. Another woman, who now lives abroad and gave her evidence by video link, said she lives in an apartment with a lift and if a man gets into the lift she can't stop thinking 'what if?' She said she realises that she should not tar all men with the same brush, but Gallagher's attack had made her an angrier, wearier and a meaner person as a result. She added that she does feel disgusted by what had happened but sometimes feels glad that he had chosen her and that she had alerted the authorities to what was happening as she hated to think what number of victims there might have been. Man apologises Gallagher took to the witness stand and said he wanted to apologise to his victims. He said he 'truly regretted' his actions and was sorry for the hurt and pain he had caused his victims and their families. Asked by his barrister, Mr Colm Smyth, SC, if he realised this was a huge breach of trust, Gallagher replied that he did. He said he had engaged in 24 counselling sessions to better understand the impact his actions have had on others. Mr Smyth said his client accepted full responsibility for his actions, that he had now lost his employment and had become a pariah in the local community because of the publicity surrounding the case. He added the fact that the offences took place in a sacred place, a place of pilgrimage for Christian people going back many centuries, also had to be acknowledged. Mr Smyth suggested to Judge John Aylmer that there also has to be 'light at the end of the tunnel' for Gallagher, asking him to consider his client's remorse, his blameless life up until now and his guilty plea. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
