Minister Foley announces €20 million School Library Book Grant

The Minister for Education Norma Foley today (Sunday 17 April) announced that €20 million will be provided to recognised primary and post-primary schools for the purchase of books, audio books and other media for the purposes of improving their existing literacy resource banks.

This €20 million fund will be paid to schools in the coming weeks and is additional to that already given for the school books rental scheme.

Minister Foley said:

"A love of reading is one the greatest gifts we can give a child. It is of utmost importance that we provide access to the highest quality books in all our schools. They enable our students to go on magical journeys, experience new ideas and open their minds to infinite possibilities. In doing so reading assists in the development of language and literacy skills. It is said that books are uniquely portable magic and I firmly believe that reading opens up a world of imagination and endless possibilities; taking the reader to places they have never been, provoking curiosity, wonder and discussion.

"As a teacher, I know well the value to our students of reading widely, and I have been determined that we invest in our school literacy resources. With this initiative we can ensure that schools and our students have access to the highest quality books and materials to support their literacy.

"Considerable progress has been made in promoting a high level of literacy since the 2011 Literacy and Numeracy Strategy and Interim Review 2017. The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016 results showed that the reading skills of primary school children in Ireland, both in the paper based and online assessment are among the best in all European and OECD countries. It is important to build on this good work and ensure that these high standards are maintained.

"Schools will receive excellent and expert support from Public Library Supports for Schools, to help spend their grant funding to meet needs of their students. I look forward to seeing our students in reading nooks and libraries all over Ireland, enjoying a great read."

The grant is to be paid to schools based on pupil numbers at the same rate for all schools, primary and post-primary. The department will also send a guidance note to all schools, with support from the libraries service, on how schools can best use the funding received.

Public libraries already provide a range of supports for school under the Public Library Supports for Schools jointly agreed by the Department of Education and the Department of Rural and Community Development. Public libraries will support the roll-out of the School Library Book Grant through the provision of additional measures and resources, in two steps.

Step one will consist of webinars open to representatives of primary and post-primary schools.

The initial webinars will be held in May and will focus on the practical process of selecting a meaningful book collection for each school, including reading lists developed by libraries and Children's Books Ireland and a section on library services supporting schools, emphasising the benefits of class visits, the range of services available, including classroom sets, teachers resources and online resources.

A second set of webinars will take place at the start of the next school year, focusing on maximising the new collection, again linking into library services and the much broader range of resources libraries can offer to support.

In step two, each library service will communicate with the schools within its area, outlining the levels of supports that the individual library service can provide locally, based on local resources. This will begin in the coming school year.

Colette Byrne, Kilkenny County Council Chief Executive and Chair of the LGMA Libraries Development Committee said:

"The grant funding from the Department of Education will provide access to more and better reading opportunities for children and young adults, across all school-going ages and reading abilities.

"Public libraries have a long tradition of providing a wide range of resources, activities and expertise which strongly support primary and post primary schools in developing children's literacy, numeracy, creativity and communication skills. In order to ensure that this grant funding delivers the best possible reading and personal development outcomes for the students, the public library service is now making additional, specifically tailored support measures and resources available to schools."

Elaina Ryan, CEO of Children's Books Ireland said:

"Children's Books Ireland is ready to support schools as they build up their libraries with books that are contemporary, engaging and representative of their students. Working closely with public libraries, we hope that our downloadable purchasing lists, webinars and resource packs will ensure that all schools are well informed and get the best books for their students with this grant."

Notes

Photographs will issue directly to picture desks from Maxwell Photography.

Funding of €20 million is being made available in 2022 to enable all recognised schools (primary and post-primary) to purchase books, audio books and other media for the purposes of improving their existing literacy resource banks.

This funding is additional to that already given for the school books rental scheme and book grants to all recognised primary and post-primary schools within the Free Education Scheme in order to alleviate the cost of school books for parents.

Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy

The Department of Education is committed to raising standards in literacy and numeracy in early years, primary and post primary settings. In 2011 the department published Literacy and Numeracy for Learning and Life: The National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011-2020. The Interim review of the strategy was published in 2017, with updated and new targets for literacy and numeracy, identifying the priority areas such as numeracy and DEIS.

Work has commenced on the development of a follow-on Literacy and Numeracy strategy. The strategy will be informed by robust research to include consideration of national and international practice, by stakeholder engagement and public consultation. It is intended that the new strategy would be published by the end of 2022.

Library Support Measures for School Book Grant

Public libraries provide a range of supports for school under the Public Library Supports for Schools jointly agreed by the Department of Education and the Department of Rural and Community Development. To support the roll-out of the School Book Grant, public libraries will now provide additional measures and resources in a two-step approach as follows:

Step One

National webinars which will be open to representatives from all primary and post-primary schools to attend and will be recorded and made available for online viewing afterwards. The first two webinars will be held towards the end of May and will cover:

• assessing the library collection
• stock selection

The initial webinars will focus on the practical process of selecting a meaningful book collection for each school, including reading lists developed by libraries and Children's Books Ireland and a section on library services supporting schools, emphasising the benefits of class visits, the range of services available, including classroom sets, teachers resources, online resources.

A second set of webinars will take place later in the year, around September, focussing on maximising the new collection and again linking into library services and the much broader range of resources libraries can offer to support:

• reader development/engagement
• setting up a library including shelving and display, lending management

Step Two

Each library service will communicate to the schools within its area, outlining the levels of supports that the individual library service can provide locally to the schools within the local authority catchment, based on local resources.

Children's Books Ireland

Children's Books Ireland is a national charity and arts organisation that champions every child's right to develop a love of reading. Further information can be found on https://childrensbooksireland.ie/