Schools facing traumatic event should provide support and routine, says guidance

The west Dublin schools attended by three young people who were killed in Tallaght at the weekend are being supported by the National Educational Psychological Services (NEPS).

The short-term supports, provided by the Department of Education, can be called upon in the aftermath of an unexpected and traumatic event that overwhelms a school’s normal coping mechanisms.

Iggy Keane, chairman of the board of management of St Aidan’s Senior National School in Tallaght, which eight-year-old twins Christy and Chelsea Cawley had joined in recent days, said the late children’s classmates and staff are being supported by two psychologists from NEPS.

The school is following its critical incident plan, as is recommended by the Department of Education, and it contacted NEPS on Sunday as soon as news broke that two of its students had been killed at their home in Tallaght on Saturday night, along with their older sister Lisa Cash (18).

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Staff members are being advised about age-appropriate language to use and how to communicate to primary school students about the deaths of their friends.

The school places a “big emphasis” on sports, with links to local football clubs, and the facilities will play an important role in helping students through this period, said Mr Keane.

The school will hold a closed prayer service on Friday led by Monsignor Dan O’Connor from the Education Secretariat of the Archdiocese of Dublin.

St Aidan’s Community School, where Lisa Cash was a student until 2021, said psychologists from NEPS, counsellors, the school’s pastoral care team and relevant staff would be present at the school from Monday morning “to assist all students affected”.

A Department of Education spokeswoman said NEPS’s primary role following a tragic event is to advise and support teachers and other adults who work daily with students and who know them well. “Best practice indicates that in the aftermath of a critical incident students need to be with people they know and trust,” she said. Therefore, it is more beneficial if school staff provide support to students as they will be present in the longer term, she added.

NEPS guidelines, refreshed in 2016, state that routine is “very important at a time of tragedy”, as it provides a sense of security, especially for younger students. It helps students to see that, despite the awful event, life continues.

It is an upsetting time for staff as well and it is okay, and possibly even reassuring, for students to know and see staff upset, the guidance says.