Over 24,000 Waterford schoolchildren to benefit from €4m Free Schools Book Scheme funding

Minister of State for Planning & Local Government, John Cummins TD has welcomed this morning’s announcement that over 24,000 Waterford schoolchildren are set to benefit from €4,025,765 worth of funding under the 2026/27 Free School Books Scheme.

24,254 students at both primary and post-primary level across a total of 96 Waterford schools will benefit from the scheme. 13,965 children at primary level across 76 Waterford schools will avail of €1,095,600 of Government funding – while 10,559 pupils will be supported at secondary level across 20 Waterford schools – benefitting from an allocation of €2,930,165.

The scheme means no parent will be asked to purchase any schoolbooks, workbooks, or copybooks. Nationwide, over 947,000 children across 4,000 schools in Ireland will benefit from a total fund of over €157million.

Welcoming the announcement, Minister Cummins said: “This is great news for students and their families in Waterford. Fine Gael have been committed to reducing the cost of education and we have worked hard in recent years to further reduce that burden. The expansion of the scheme to secondary level and reduction in costs are all part of a wider plan to put money back in families’ pockets and to help them to give their children the best possible start.”

“I’d like to thank my Fine Gael colleagues, Minister for Education and Youth, Hildegarde Naughton TD and her predecessor Helen McEntee TD for their work on this scheme which has been vital in removing barriers to education and providing equal opportunities for everyone. We want to ensure that all of our children and young people have the opportunity of access to education which empowers them to thrive and realise the full extent of their potential and today’s announcement is a further example of that commitment.”

Speaking today, Education Minister Hildegarde Naughton said:“The Free Schoolbooks Scheme is making a real difference for families by easing back-to-school costs and ensuring that every child and young person in our schools has the resources they need to learn and succeed.

“By providing funding directly to schools, the Government is removing the cost of books and resources as a barrier to participation in education and supporting greater equity and consistency in classrooms. The Free Schoolbooks Scheme covers schoolbooks and a range of essential classroom resources, removing the need for parents and guardians to purchase or rent these items at the start of the school year.”

Further information can be accessed at gov.ie/schoolbookschemes.