Schools to get €96 per pupil under free schoolbooks scheme
The €50m fund will provide free schoolbooks, workbooks, and copybooks to more than 558,000 pupils. Stock picture
Education Minister Norma Foley will today reveal details of the €50m free schoolbooks scheme which will see schools paid €96 for every primary school pupil from September.
That money will provide free schoolbooks, workbooks, and copybooks to more than 558,000 children.
It is the first time in the history of the State that it has covered the costs of such materials for all primary school pupils.
Last year, children’s charity Barnardos found that the average cost of schoolbooks in 2022 for primary school children was €110.
Department of Education officials arrived at the €96 figure following an analysis of the schools involved in the pilot free books scheme that ran in more than 100 DEIS primary schools.
The free schoolbooks scheme was announced as part of Budget 2023 and is expected to become a permanent measure.
Ms Foley said it is her determination to expand the scheme further to post-primary in the future.
