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Guidance


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Guidance in education

Guidance facilitates people throughout their lives to manage their own educational, training, occupational, personal, social, and life choices so that they reach their full potential and contribute to the development of a better society.

Guidance in schools refers to a range of learning experiences provided in developmental sequence that assist students to develop self-management skills which will lead to effective choices and decisions about their lives. It encompasses the three separate, but interlinked areas of personal and social development, educational guidance and career guidance.

Guidance is an entitlement in post-primary schools as per the Education Act (1998) Section 9 (c), which states that a school shall use its available resources to ensure that students have access to appropriate guidance to assist them in their educational and career choices.

Guidance in post-primary schools is a whole-school activity that is integrated into all school programmes at both Junior and Senior Cycle and it supports students from first to sixth year.

There is currently no formal provision for guidance in primary schools within the lifelong context. However, within the Action Plan accompanying the Strategic National Framework for Lifelong Guidance (2024-2030), Action 2.5 provides for the introduction of a ‘whole-school approach’ to guidance at primary level before 2030.

Lifelong guidance consultation, framework and action plan

January 2025 Progress Report – National Strategic Framework for Lifelong Guidance: Strategic Action Plan (2024-2030)
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National Strategic Framework for Lifelong Guidance (2024-2030)
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National Strategic Framework for Lifelong Guidance: Strategic Action Plan 2024-2030
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National Consultation on a Strategic Framework for Lifelong Guidance
Report on key messages emerging August 2023
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Training and qualifications for guidance counsellors in post-primary schools

To work as a guidance counsellor in the post-primary sector, a dual qualification is required: a teaching qualification for post-primary (recognised by The Teaching Council) and a guidance-counselling qualification (recognised by the Department of Education).

Guidance-counsellor qualifications

It remains the case, as set out in the most-recent staffing arrangement circular that a person being assigned as a post-primary guidance counsellor must be a post-primary qualified and registered teacher with The Teaching Council and, in addition, hold the relevant recognised qualification for school-guidance work.

Activities of the guidance counsellor

Information on guidance-counselling qualifications recognised by the Department of Education can also be found here.

Some examples of the various activities relating to the work of a guidance counsellor, are detailed on page 8 of the Program Recognition Framework. (PDF, from page 8)

There are eight areas of competence which should be addressed by programme providers seeking recognition from the Department of Education (DE) or the Department of Further and higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS) for their programmes in guidance counselling:

1) Guidance theory and professional practice;

2) Counselling skills in a guidance context;

3) Labour market, learning and career-related information;

4) Teaching and learning: design, delivery and evaluation of programmes/learning experiences;

5) Communicating, collaborating and networking;

6) Research and evidence-informed practice;

7) Leading and managing the guidance service and;

8) Psychometric testing.

The Programme Recognition Framework will be reviewed in due course.

At present in Ireland, three universities offer masters/postgraduate diploma programmes that are approved by the DE:

  • Dublin City University;
  • Maynooth University and;
  • University of Limerick.

Graduates from other programmes which operated in UCD, TCD and UCC are also recognised.

List of recognised guidance-counselling courses
February 2024
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Working as a guidance counsellor in Ireland

Working as a post-primary guidance counsellor in Ireland 2024-2025
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Circulars, information notes, assessment instruments and other publications

Circulars

Information Notes

Publications

Oide guidance team support

The guidance team in Oide support schools in relation to whole-school guidance planning and practice through professional learning experiences and bespoke school support. Bookings and applications can be made through Oide.ie.

The Oide guidance team can be contacted here.

Guidance-counselling supervision scheme

The guidance-counselling supervision scheme facilitates guidance counsellors working in second-level schools and colleges of further education in undertaking professional supervision of their guidance-counselling work, and particularly their one-to-one personal/social guidance-counselling activities with students.

Guidance counselling supervision is under the chairmanship of the Teacher Education Section (TES) of the Department of Education, and is administered through Monaghan Education Centre. A member of the Guidance Inspectorate and a member of the Guidance Unit of the DE also represent the DE on the supervision steering committee.

The Institute of Guidance Counsellors organise the location and timing of the counselling support service at local level throughout the country.

The service is delivered through a series of five two-hour sessions of counselling supervision support in each academic year, by a professionally qualified counselling supervisor.

Each guidance counsellor will therefore have access to a minimum of 10 hours’ supervision throughout the academic year and will be provided with an appropriate certificate of attendance at the end of May. Additional sessions may be sought in some cases for example, a critical incident has taken place in a school.

Guidance support service to the European Schools

This service is co-ordinated by the Department of Education and is delivered by qualified guidance counsellors recognised by the Department.

The Department of Education provides funding for access to appropriate guidance for children who are enrolled in the 13 European Schools in six European countries.

Read more about the European Schools here.

This guidance support service is intended to supplement, but not replace, the guidance support already available to students in the European Schools.

It is directed specifically to the needs of pupils who may be considering an application to Irish third-level FET and training institutions and who have questions regarding general entry requirements, particular course requirements, application procedures and deadlines. It also provides support and information for those wishing to explore the world of work.

The service is provided in November, December and January in each academic year.

Privacy notice for the guidance support service to the European Schools
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National Policy Group supporting the advancement of lifelong guidance

Press release: Minister Foley announces establishment of National Policy Group for Lifelong Guidance

A separate advisory group has been assembled to advise on the development of the National Strategic Framework for Lifelong Guidance and the accompanying Strategic Action Plan.

The National Policy Group wishes to thank the members of the advisory group for their expert and significant contribution.

The following organisations are represented on the advisory group:

  • AGA – Adult Guidance Association
  • AHEAD – Association for Higher Education Access & Disability
  • AHECS – Association of Higher Education Careers Services
  • DFHERIS – Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
  • DE – Department of Education
  • ETBI – Education and Training Boards Ireland
  • IBEC – Irish Business and Employers Confederation
  • IGC – Institute of Guidance Counsellors
  • INOU – Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed
  • JMB – Joint Managerial Body
  • Maynooth University (Department of Adult and Community Education)
  • Trinity Careers Service

Legislation and policy statements about guidance

There are a number of key legislation, policy statements, circulars and documents published by the Oireachtas, DE, DFHERIS and others that relate directly or indirectly to guidance provision in Ireland.

Several EU Council resolutions, recommendations and conclusions include reference to guidance within the wider context of specific education, training and labour-market policies.

From 2008-2015, the European Lifelong Guidance Policy Network (ELGPN) was funded by the European Commission to bring together EU member states to identify, develop and support the development of guidance policies. Ireland was a full member of the ELGPN from 2011-2015.

The National Guidance Forum was established in 2004 as part of the programme of events of the Irish Presidency of the European Union. It was a joint initiative of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of Education and Science. The remit of the Forum was to:

1) Explore how individuals, at any point throughout their lives, can access quality guidance appropriate to their needs;

2) Identify collaborative action across the guidance continuum;

3) Agree recommendations for a lifelong guidance strategy in collaboration with other stakeholders.

Useful policy documents:

Indecon review of career-guidance tools and information

National and international guidance bodies

National and international guidance bodies

National Guidance Forum