In July 2016, the Government launched a major initiative for Dublin’s North East Inner City (NEIC) to oversee the long term, social and economic regeneration of the area. The Mulvey Report entitled “Dublin’s North East Inner City – Creating a Brighter Future” was published in February 2017 and made a number of recommendations. As part of this response, the City Connects pilot programme was launched within 10 DEIS Band 1 primary schools in the NEIC.
The NEIC City Connects Pilot Project commenced in 10 NEIC primary schools in October 2020. The pilot is led by my Department and Tusla Education Support Service (TESS), in conjunction with Mary Immaculate College and Boston College. City Connects is a system originally developed by Boston College that organises student support and leverages existing school and community-based resources in order to improve students’ academic and social-emotional outcomes.
My Department is committed to supporting a quality and inclusive school system that provides an equal opportunity at success for all children, including those at risk of educational disadvantage. In line with the Programme for Government, the Government is continuing to examine how the model of intervention in the north-east inner city (NEIC) could be extended to other comparative areas experiencing disadvantage, such as Drogheda.
