ACCS/Info Bulletin 01/26
The Secretary,
Board of Management,
each Community and Comprehensive School.
Members of the Executive of ACCS.
Dear Colleagues,
On behalf of all of us in Head Office, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your school community a very happy and peaceful New Year.
Please see attached the first ACCS Information Bulletin of 2026 which is a summary of the December 2025 Briefing facilitated on Thursday 18th December 2025. The bulletin consolidates the key topics discussed and includes links to the recording, presentation slides, and related information & bulletins for ease of reference.
Please note the following:
ACCS Child Protection Training for Board of Management Members is now scheduled to take place on February 3rd, 2026, from 7.00pm until 8.30pm. This event is planned for any Board members who have yet to complete the training on the updated procedures. These must be adopted by Boards of Management by the end of December 2026 at the latest. This training is mandatory and records of attendance must be kept on file. Please bring details of this training to the attention of all board members. Certificates of attendance will be available for BOM records.
A separate Information Bulletin about the preparation of a Staff Seniority List that was referenced during the Briefing will issue early next week.
Communities of Practice: Exceptionally Able Students & Student Voice, ACCS invites expressions of interest from schools to participate in these two separate projects commencing in 2026. Please email jomalley@accs.ie if you wish to engage in one or both projects by Friday 16th January, if you have not already done so.
ACCS Strategic Plan. ACCS would greatly appreciate it if you could forward the link to the survey to your board members at your earliest convenience. The survey will be open for completion until Thursday the 15th of January 2026. The link to the survey form is here: ACCS Strategic Planning Survey 2026–2030 For Boards of Management – Fill in form
“Have Your Say” The Convention on Education: The Department of Education and Youth is seeking applications from children and young people (8-24 years), parents and guardians and school employees and early years educators to apply to become members of the Convention on Education, which will take place in 2026. You can find more information about the Convention and apply to become a member at www.gov.ie/educationconvention. Schools asked to highlight with stakeholders before Friday 9th January. See sample communication attached.
Kindest regards,
Áine
Áine O'Sullivan,
General Secretary,
ACCS
Download the full Info Bulletin here
December Briefing for Boards of Management and School leaders
Partner pack for Convention on Education EOI process (En/Ga)