Minister for Education and Youth Hildegarde Naughton has marked the start of Anti-Bullying Week by unveiling the national Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour 2026 survey and urging schools and students nationwide to participate.

The annual survey, run by the Department of Education and Youth's Inspectorate under the Cineáltas Action Plan on Bullying, captures children's and young people's experiences of bullying in schools. Its findings inform national policy and help schools to prevent and tackle bullying more effectively.

Schools across the country are asked to facilitate the research by giving students access to the online survey between 9 and 23 November 2026 and by encouraging take-up among the relevant year groups.

Launching the survey, Minister Naughton said: "Every child and young person deserves to feel safe and respected in school. As Anti-Bullying Week begins, I am encouraging students across the country to take part in this important survey and share their experiences.

"Listening to children and young people is at the heart of Cineáltas. Their insights help us to better understand the reality of bullying behaviour in schools and ensure that our policies and supports respond to their needs.

"I want to thank schools for their support. By encouraging participation, they are helping to ensure that the voices of children and young people continue to shape our efforts to prevent and address bullying and to build school environments where every student feels they belong." To coincide with Anti-Bullying Week, schools have been issued with resources to support the implementation of Cineáltas and to promote this year's theme, 'No-One Left Out'. The focus is on exclusionary bullying, its effects on children and young people, and the part everyone can play in fostering safe, inclusive school communities.

As part of the week's activities, the department will host its third Cineáltas Showcase, highlighting effective practice in schools to prevent and address bullying and to advance inclusion, diversity and wellbeing.

This year's showcase sits within a broader Student Participation in Education Conference, an associated event of the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2026. The conference will convene students, educators, policymakers, researchers and international delegates to examine how young people can meaningfully shape education policy and school life, including on bullying.

A student-led World Café-style consultation on bullying behaviour will also feature at the conference, offering another forum for young people to share their perspectives and experiences.

The Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour survey is a core commitment of Cineáltas, ensuring children's and young people's voices directly inform policy and practice. It provides national-level evidence on bullying behaviour, school culture, safety, inclusion and wellbeing.

The 2026 survey places particular emphasis on how schools support students with diverse sexual orientations and/or gender identities to feel safe, included and a sense of belonging. Results will be directly comparable with those from 2025, enabling trend monitoring and supporting the continued roll-out of Cineáltas.

The 2026 report will be the fourth publication in the current Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour series.