CES was commissioned by the Department of Education and Youth to provide an independent evaluation of its Counselling in Primary Schools pilot (CPS-P). The evaluation report was published in August 2026.
The Counselling in Primary Schools Pilot was launched in 2023 by the Department of Education and Youth in response to increasing wellbeing and mental health needs among children. Over three school years, the pilot, led by the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS), introduced two new components in Irish primary schools:
Working under the supervision of NEPS psychologists, EWPs provide practical wellbeing supports directly in schools through whole-class lessons, small-group programmes and one-to-one skills building sessions with pupils. They also provide guidance and support to parents and school staff, helping to strengthen wellbeing across the wider school community.
Overall, the CES evaluation found that the pilot strengthened awareness of wellbeing across school communities and helped develop a shared understanding and language around wellbeing among pupils, parents and staff.
Pupils described the effect of the wellbeing sessions with the EWP saying,
"It pushes everything bad out of your head, and you focus on more." Another said, "It makes me feel better because it's helped me calm down."
A principal advised that
“Our pupil established a good relationship with the counsellor and appeared to trust him from the outset, enabling her to communicate openly, freely and safely her deep-seated ongoing anxieties in the areas of critical illness and mortality”. A parent fed back "She [was] so much… happier after each session, [the counsellor] had a massive impact on her. She just loved every second of it. It was brilliant for her”.
A Principal speaking of the one-to-one skills building sessions with the EWP said,
"In a six-week block, you can get real value in changing a child's mindset or helping them get over some difficulty they're having. It was often those children who would have fallen through the cracks. Parents also spoke positively about the importance of providing wellbeing supports early in a child's life. One parent commented: "I think it's fantastic. It's so tough on children at the moment. I think it's really important just to get it into their head from a young age that it's ok to reach out and talk to somebody."
The findings demonstrate the value of early intervention and prevention focused supports in primary schools and highlight the important role schools can play in helping children build resilience, develop healthy coping strategies and thrive.
The evaluation found that one-to-one counselling provided valuable, targeted support for individual children. However, the scalability of this component was limited by challenges in securing qualified and accredited counsellors, as well as ensuring appropriate referrals for the short-term counselling.
In contrast, providing schools with access to Education Wellbeing Practitioners demonstrated particular strengths in reaching a wider range of pupils, parents and school staff.
By combining early intervention, prevention and whole-school approaches, the EWP model showed strong potential as a sustainable and scalable approach to supporting wellbeing across school communities, while helping to ensure that children receive appropriate support at the earliest possible stage.
Publishing the report, Minister Hildegarde Naughton TD said,
"I welcome this evaluation, which demonstrates the positive benefits of providing counselling and wellbeing supports in the school setting.
“The evaluation found that pupils had positive experiences engaging with counsellors and Education Wellbeing Practitioners, felt heard and valued, and developed practical tools to support emotional regulation and their mental health and wellbeing.
“The findings also demonstrate the important role schools can play in promoting wellbeing and providing timely, preventative supports for children. The positive results from this pilot have already informed the expansion of these supports, including through the DEIS Plus scheme.
“While specialist mental health assessment and therapeutic services remain the responsibility of the Department of Health and the HSE, school-based supports can complement these services by building resilience, strengthening wellbeing and supporting early intervention.”
The positive findings from the pilot have already informed the expansion of these supports. In October 2024, the Department extended counselling supports to 61 urban DEIS primary schools in Dublin South-West and Dublin North.
In addition, as announced in May 2026, primary schools participating in the DEIS Plus scheme will have access to Education Wellbeing Practitioners, alongside one-to-one counselling supports for a small number of children.
The evaluation report and a summary are available here.
