Minister McEntee Launches Largest Ever Survey of Primary School and Pre-School Parents
- Published on: 4 November 2025
- Last updated on: 4 November 2025
Minister urges all primary school and pre-school parents to have their say on the future of school provision
Minister for Education and Youth, Helen McEntee TD, has today announced a major step in expanding parental choice in education, with the launch of an online, school-specific survey of parents, guardians and primary school communities. The survey – the largest of its kind ever undertaken in Ireland – will assess parental demand for different types of primary school provision including patronage, co-education and Irish-medium provision.
Parents and guardians of children who are either in, or yet to start, primary school – as well as primary school staff and members of primary school Boards of Management – will be asked to take part.
The survey will go live today, 4th November, and will run until 16th December 2025.
Minister McEntee said:
“Our education system must reflect our society but more importantly, it must respond to what parents want for their children. That is why I am delighted to launch the largest ever survey of parents and guardians of pre-school and primary-school students, to determine what type of education they would like to see for their child.
“This is the first time parents, guardians, teachers and board members across every primary school community in Ireland will have the opportunity to clearly express what kind of school they wish to see in their area.
“By assessing parental demand in every community, we can identify what the need is and work with schools to support them through that process.
“Where schools wish to explore options, my department will provide direct support, including the appointment of a facilitator to work with boards, staff and parents.
“Engagement with stakeholders will assist in strengthening approaches already in place, ensuring clarity and consistency for schools and parents. It will also help ensure that every child’s right to an inclusive and respectful education experience is upheld.”
All responses to the survey will remain confidential and anonymous. In areas where parents and guardians of current and future pupils express interest in an alternative provision, the department will help school communities and provide support to them.
To assist with the practical aspects of reconfiguration, once-off funding of up to €5,000 will be available to each participating school to cover implementation costs such as updating signage, stationery, or websites.
Examples of primary schools across Ireland which have seen changes in the three areas being assessed in recent years include:
EXAMPLES
- Nenagh Community National School, Tipperary, which changed patronage from the Diocese of Killaloe to Tipperary Education and Training Board in 2022
- Bunscoil Synge, Synge Street, Dublin 8, which transitioned to Irish medium education in recent years
- Scoil Iosáf and Courtenay NS, Newcastle West, Limerick, which both transitioned to co-educational status from September 2025
Information regarding co-education, patronage / ethos and education through Irish can be accessed here: www.gov.ie/primaryschoolsurvey.
The online survey is available from here: www.gov.ie/primaryschoolsurvey.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
School Survey www.gov.ie/primaryschoolsurvey – live
Overview of Primary School Survey
What is the Primary School Survey?
The Primary School Survey asks parents, guardians, school staff and boards of management members their preference about the primary schools in which they work, or in which their children currently attend, or will attend in coming years. The Department of Education and Youth will use the results of the survey to plan how we provide education at primary level, and to ensure that schools meet the needs of their local communities.
Why is the Department of Education and Youth undertaking this survey?
School communities are reflective of the rich and diverse society we live in. In the context of the evolving environment within which schools are operating, the availability of up-to-date data and in particular, clear data on the preferences of parents and guardians in respect of the primary schools which their children currently attend, or will attend in coming years, is very important. The results of the survey will help the department in planning education provision at primary level. The survey results will also enable consideration by each school, in conjunction with its school community, of the actions needed to best meet parental demand.
What will the survey ask?
The short, online, school-specific, survey asks a small number of questions, including the following:
- Would you prefer your primary school to be a co-educational school or a single-sex school?
- Would you prefer your primary school to operate under a denominational (religious) patron or to operate under a multi-denominational (non-religious) patron?
- Would you prefer your primary school to provide education primarily through the English language or through the Irish language?
When will the survey open and how long will it run for?
The survey is open from 4 November to 16 December 2025.
Who should complete the survey?
The survey is for:
- Parents and guardians of children who have not yet started primary school.
- Parents and guardians of children currently attending primary school
- Primary school staff
- Primary school Board of Management members
How do I complete the survey?
The survey can be completed online and is available from www.gov.ie/primaryschoolsurvey. For any parents and guardians who for personal reasons are unable to complete an online survey, the department can be contacted at schoolsurvey@education.gov.ie for assistance.
When will the survey results be available?
Initial high-level summary results will be published in early 2026.
What will happen with the survey results?
The department will use the survey results to input into its analysis of national, local and school-specific data to help the department in respect of planning at primary school level. The department will work with relevant stakeholders on actioning the outcomes from the surveys in the context of future school planning. This survey is not a final step. Where there is clear support from parents and guardians for change to be considered, a further process of inclusive dialogue will begin.
Who should parents contact if they want to discuss special educational needs provision for their child(ren)?
The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) was set up to improve the delivery of education services to persons with special educational needs with particular emphasis on children. The NCSE local service is delivered through their national network of Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs) who interact with parents and schools. The number of SENOs has increased from 65 to 120 with the aim of providing an improved level of service for parents and schools.
Parents of children and young people seeking a special class or special school place should contact the NCSE and have regard to the annual process and timelines for notifying the NCSE. For example, those seeking a special class or special school place for the 2026/2027 school year were asked to notify the NCSE by 1 October 2025.
NCSE contact information: https://ncse.ie/contact-the-ncse.
Any contact with the NCSE and/or SENO by a parent or guardian regarding special needs provision is completely separate to the primary school survey. All responses to the survey are confidential. The department will protect the identity of the people who respond to the survey. The department will not publish any individual response or identify to schools, any parent, guardian or child.
Information on key terms included in the survey
The survey asks a small number of questions, including on the following areas:
- co-education or single-sex school
- patronage/ethos
- language (education through English or through Irish)
We explain each of these areas below.
- Co-educational/single-sex schools
About 90% of primary schools in Ireland provide education to boys and girls across all classes. We call this co-education. The remaining 10% or so are single-sex primary schools and provide education to boys only or girls only in some or all classes.
School Type
Approx. percentage of primary schools
Co-educational primary schools (boys and girls educated in the same school)
90%
Single-sex primary schools
10%
2. Patronage/ethos
All recognised primary schools (irrespective of patron):
- follow the national curriculum
- follow the Department of Education and Youth rules and regulations
- have a school patron.
The school patron appoints a Board of Management to manage the school on their behalf. Under the Education Act, 1998 the patron also decides on the ethos of the school.
Ethos of Primary Schools
Denominational – Catholic
88.3%
Denominational - Other religions, mainly Church of Ireland
6.2%
Multi-denominational
5.5%
Children in multi-denominational schools learn about all faiths and belief systems as part of the school day. They use multi-denominational programmes, like:
- Education and Training Board Community National School’s Goodness Me! Goodness You!
- Educate Together’s Learn Together
- An Foras Pátrúnachta’s Croí na Scoile.
3. Language (education through English or through Irish)
92% of primary schools provide education through English. The remaining 8% provide education through Irish.
Language of Instruction
Percentage of primary schools
Education through English
92%
Education through Irish
8%
Please see statement from school patrons below.
