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One in four parents say their child is required to purchase a laptop of tablet for their schoolwork (Stock image)

Parents hit by extra costs see back-to-school bills mount

School contributions, digital devices and PE kits can add significant costs when sending children to school, according to a new survey by the CCPC.

Ireland • 03 Jul 24

Migrant group prepares kids for return to school

Teenagers from minority backgrounds have been getting tips and advice about the return to school.

Back To School • 28 Aug 22

Sarah, a mother of four in rural Wexford, has been hit by the rising costs of fuel and food

Parent says Govt 'out of touch' on back-to-school costs

A mother of four from rural Wexford believes the Government is out of touch with the financial challenges facing families due to the rising costs of fuel and food.

Ireland • 26 Jul 22

Kantar said that people are visiting supermarkets more frequently than they have since June

Grocery market sees impact of local lockdowns

Shoppers are starting to return to more normal habits following the unprecedented spending seen during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, new figures suggest today.

Business • 21 Sep 20

Updates as students return to schools

With primary and secondary schools beginning their return to classes after a five-month hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, follow regular updates on the issues facing teachers, parents, students and the Government.

Education • 04 Sep 20

The school cycle bus sets off each morning from the northside of Limerick to attend schools in the city centre

Cycle bus helps Limerick kids get back to school safely

A school cycle bus has been set up in Limerick enabling more children to cycle to school with the opening of a new cycle lane over the River Shannon in the city making cycling much safer.

Back To School • 01 Sep 20

It's back to school at home for some at-risk children

Thousands of children across the country head back to school this week, however for children with underlying health conditions this could be too much of a risk.

Back To School • 01 Sep 20

Pupils during a class at Françoise-Giroud middle school in Vincennes, east of Paris

New reality as Europe's children return to school

Millions of pupils have returned to school across Europe, with hand cleansing stations, social distancing and staggered play time the new normal as countries seek ways to get children back into the classroom safely.

Coronavirus • 01 Sep 20

Having healthy routines in place will help with the adjustment of returning to school, like eating well, taking exercise and getting to bed early

Back to school advice for younger readers

RTÉ's news2day has some advice for younger readers who may be anxious about the return to school.

Back To School • 31 Aug 20

Children who are part of the Just Ask youth club play football near Greek Street flats

Concern some students will struggle with school return

Hundreds of thousands of students will be back at their desks tomorrow, but not all are looking forward to their return.

Ireland • 30 Aug 20

Among those starting were five year olds Éabha Ní Fhátharta agus Joey Ó Fátharta

First day at school for four sets of twins in Co Galway

Four sets of twins have started in one junior infants class in Galway, in what the principal says is a first for the school.

Back To School • 27 Aug 20

The survey was conducted over last week and has a final sample size of 1,333

Covid: 1 in 3 parents concerned over school environment

A CSO survey has found that one in three parents of schoolgoing children are "extremely" or "very" concerned about the ability of their child's school to provide a safe environment in the context of Covid-19.

Education • 27 Aug 20

The area is demarcated by colour circles and pencil-shaped bollards to prevent illegal parking in the vicinity of a school

School to trial 'zones' to encourage social distancing

New "school zones" are being tried out in Dublin to discourage traffic and stop parents dropping off at school gates.

Education • 26 Aug 20

St Patrick's Girls in Limerick city is returning with almost no social distancing indoors due to space issues

Most older children should be social distancing - NPHET

Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn has said that NPHET expects and hopes, from a public health perspective, that the vast majority of older children in primary schools should be maintaining a distance of one metre between each other.

Education • 26 Aug 20

We spoke to five Irish teachers working overseas about their back to school experience.

Irish teachers on back to school around the world

By early April, nearly 1.5 billion children and young people were out of school because of the coronavirus pandemic. We spoke to five Irish teachers working overseas about their back to school experience.

Back To School • 26 Aug 20

Kate Cross, Cassie Mallon and Tom Maloney

Kildare pupils on starting secondary school

Pupils from Two Mile House National School, Co Kildare, reflect on graduating from sixth class a week before starting secondary school.

Back To School • 26 Aug 20

Back to school guide: Dos and Don'ts

To coincide with the reopening of primary and secondary schools, the Department of Education has drawn up guidance for parents.

Education • 26 Aug 20

Prioritising student mental health in the curriculum

Starting or returning to secondary school can be stressful at the best of times, let alone during a global pandemic.

Back To School • 25 Aug 20

Morning Ireland will be answering more questions on schools on Wednesday morning - email backtoschool@rte.ie

Back to school: Your questions answered

With schools due to return in the coming days, there is still a lot of uncertainty about how some things will work. On our Instagram page, we asked people to submit their questions on the back-to-school process. Here's what we know so far.

Back To School • 25 Aug 20

Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn urged those who have concerns to log onto the return to school page on the Government website

Children with 'sniffles' can go to school - GPs

The President of the Irish College of General Practitioners has said that if a child has sniffles and sneezes the odd time but is "otherwise well" and does not have any symptoms of Covid-19, they can go to school.

Back To School • 24 Aug 20

The school, which has 222 pupils, plans to open on Thursday

Social distancing concerns at Limerick city school

A Limerick primary school will reopen this week with no social distancing measures in place for the majority of its pupils.

Back To School • 24 Aug 20

Stormont's Education Minister Peter Weir met with pupils on their first day back

NI students return to school after months of disruption

Thousands of school students in Northern Ireland have been returning to their classrooms for the first time since they were closed due to Covid-19 restrictions in March.

Back To School • 24 Aug 20

Speaking on RTÉ's This Week programme, Professor Philip Nolan said it was a very anxious time for parents and teachers (file pic)

100 children test positive for virus in last two weeks

The Chair of the NPHET Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group has said that 100 children, aged between five and 14, have tested positive for Covid-19 in Ireland in the last two weeks.

Coronavirus • 09 Mar 21

We asked primary schoolchildren from Dublin how they felt about going back to school

Irish kids on back to school in the age of Covid-19

Ireland's 4,000 primary and secondary schools will begin reopening this week after a five-and a-half-month hiatus due to the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Back To School • 24 Aug 20

It is not clear if the new restrictions will be in place in time for schools that are due to start reopening next week

Second level school buses will run at 50% capacity

The Department of Education has scrapped plans to run school buses for second level students at full capacity following advice from NPHET earlier this week.

Education • 20 Aug 20