Investment Area 3.1 – Shared Learning Together Education Programme (Formal Education)

Deadline: 7-Sep-23

The Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) is now accepting applications for the PEACEPLUS Programme, Investment Area 3.1 – Shared Learning Together Education Programme (Formal Education).

Objectives

• This Investment Area will provide direct, sustained contact between children from all backgrounds through collaboration between and within schools and in pre-school settings, to promote good relations and enhance children’s skills to contribute to a cohesive society.
• It will result in an increase in the number of children (pre-school, primary and post primary), teachers, principals, practitioners engaged in sustained partnerships with those from different community, socio-economic, cultural and political backgrounds in a manner which will contribute to the attitudinal and behavioural change within schools and the wider community required to build a more peaceful, prosperous and cohesive Programme Area.

Purpose

The purpose of Shared Learning Together aligned to the Shared Education Act 2016 is to:

• deliver educational benefits to children and young persons;
• promote the efficient and effective use of resources;
• promote equality of opportunity;
• promote good relations; and
• promote respect for identity, diversity and community cohesion.

Themes

• Theme 1: Building Peaceful and Thriving Communities
• Theme 2: Delivering Economic Regeneration and Transformation
• Theme 3: Empowering and Investing in Young People
• Theme 4: Healthy and Inclusive Communities
• Theme 5: Supporting a Sustainable and Better Connected Future
• Theme 6: Building and Embedding Partnership and Collaboration

Funding Information

• The total value of €41,210,735 is available under this call. This consists of €32,968,588 ERDF and €8,242,147 governmental match.

What does the Investment Area “Shared Learning Together Education Programme” (formal education) seek to achieve?

• The education together of those from diverse communities, including reasonable numbers of both Protestant and Catholic children or young persons; including those who are experiencing socio -economic deprivation and those who are not; including pupils and young people at risk of educational underachievement, whose learning experience can be enhanced through additional supports, which is secured by the working together and co-operation of two or more relevant education providers.
• Informed by experience and evaluation, funding in this investment area will be directed towards collaborative (including cross-border) education approaches within the formal education sectors, which incorporate the following:
  • Increased participation within the education system in Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland, across pre-school settings, primary schools, post-primary schools and special schools, including those in the integrated sector, which will enable more pupils to benefit from the positive experiences and outcomes that shared education brings;
  • Increased involvement of the wider school community including parents, grandparents, teachers, school managers; enabling the development of new and sustainable relationships, which contribute to a more cohesive society;
  • Incorporation of cross-community / cross-border programmes which will develop empowered and confident learners through innovative shared teaching practices, based on the utilisation of digital technologies in teaching and learning;
  • Promotion of shared innovative cross-border/ cross-community actions to address education underachievement and disadvantage, which will also seek to equip parents with the skills to make a fuller contribution to their children’s educational and social development;
  • The extension of geographical scope to include DEIS and other disadvantaged education settings in areas outside the border counties of Ireland, in addition to schools in Northern Ireland which serve communities experiencing high levels of socio-economic disadvantage, where involvement will result in improved educational outcomes and increased social inclusion, which will contribute to improved community relations across the Programme area;
  • The development of diverse school collaborations through the exploration of wider social and civic issues of relevance to young persons (14 to 16 year olds), which can be sustained using digital platforms and other appropriate media;
  • Establishment of long-term, sustainable, mutually beneficial relationships between partner schools, including those between teachers and management staff; and
  • Incorporation of support and facilitation from youth workers and youth sector organisations, where evidenced youth-based approaches can add value to the shared education process and support more adaptive pedagogical practices within the teaching workforce.

Eligibility Criteria

• National, regional and local authorities;
• Regional and local development agencies, chambers of commerce;
• Universities, colleges, higher education, research institutions;
• Non-governmental organisations (NGOs);
• Sectoral agencies and business support organisations;
• Voluntary sector organisations;
• Other relevant public-like organisations contributing to the development of the programme area;
• Private sector – specifically micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large companies.
• The programme area for the PEACEPLUS Programme is:
  • Northern Ireland;
  • The border counties of Ireland (Counties Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan and Sligo).

For more information, visit SEUPB.