Govt announces €9.5m support package for schoolchildren

The government on Tuesday announced a support package for schoolchildren worth €9.5 million, ahead of the start of the new school year in September.

The package, given the name “Together at every beginning”, includes five separate grants for which schoolchildren can apply, with the government saying a total of 45,000 children will benefit from the grants.

The first grant is a maximum of €100 for any pupil beginning their first year of primary school, middle school, high school, or technical school, to buy school supplies. The government says the grant will benefit 26,000 children, with a total cost of €2.6m.

The second is a €200 grant for the purchase of a tablet for all children beginning their third year of primary school, combined with a €400 grant for the purchase of a laptop for all children beginning their second year of high school.

The government believes that around 17,000 children will benefit from the grant, with a total cost of €5m to the government.

The third and fourth grant go hand in hand, with families entitled to child benefit, of which at least three children attend primary school, middle school, high school, or technical school, entitled to a €150 grant each.

Families of which at least three children attend primary school, middle school, high school, or technical school, who are not entitled to any of the first three grants, are also entitled to a €150 grant each.

A total of 5,900 families are expected to benefit from the third and fourth grants, with the government estimating that it will cost €900,000.

The fifth and final grant is a discount on bus fares for those attending high schools and technical high schools, which will reduce the annual amount paid by those pupils from €200 to €30, and the fee paid monthly from €10 to €5.

The government estimates that a total of 20,000 children will benefit from the measure, which will cost a total of €1m.

They were also keen to point out that primary school students do not pay for transport to and from school, and that the fifth grant “is expected to contribute substantially, beyond the obvious support given to family’s budget, both to addressing the problem of traffic and to the green transition.”

“Every new beginning opens the door to hope and new opportunities, especially when it comes to the future of children and the beginning of the school year. The new school year is beginning with the government standing by schoolchildren, as by supporting the youth of today, a more hopeful tomorrow is ensured for all,” the government said.