| Name of the reform | LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 |
| Country | Ireland |
| Year | 2018 |
| Educational level | ISCED 1, 2 |
| Kind / type | Curriculum |
| Coverage | National |
Summary
The LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 was Ireland’s pioneering initiative to ensure all LGBTI+ young people feel safe, supported, and included in society. This strategy aimed to improve their physical, mental, and sexual health while developing inclusive communities. Additionally, it focused on enhancing research and data collection to better understand and address the specific challenges faced by LGBTI+ youth across the country.
Agenda Setting
Context:
The LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 was developed following increasing recognition of the specific challenges experienced by LGBTI+ young people, including discrimination, mental health and well-being concerns, and barriers to inclusion in education and other public services.
Aim:
The LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 aimed to create a more inclusive environment where LGBTI+ young people could participate fully, feel safe and supported, and have their rights and well-being protected. In particular, the strategy aimed to create a safe environment where the physical, mental, and sexual health of young people was improved, while society’s knowledge of their living conditions was strengthened through increased research and data collection.
Target Groups
LGBTI+ young people aged 0–24, with measures relevant to schools, families, youth services and wider public services.
Formulation and Implementation
Legislative documents:
LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 – National Youth Strategy for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex young people, Department of Children and Youth Affairs. Original strategy document.
Key actions / main measures:
The LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 set out 15 strategic objectives and 59 concrete actions, implemented across Irish government departments, to support LGBTI+ youth. In education, the strategy introduced nationwide anti-bullying programs to combat homophobic and transphobic bullying, while also developing inclusive guidelines and training for teachers and school staff. Healthcare initiatives allocated dedicated funding to youth organisations for targeted mental health support and worked to make mainstream health services and sex education more LGBTI+ inclusive. To ensure young people had a direct voice, an official Youth Advisory Group was established, giving LGBTI+ youth a seat on the steering committee to co-design and monitor these political measures. Furthermore, safety and housing actions included creating specialised training programs for the Irish police (An Garda Síochána) to address hate crimes and introducing support measures for homeless LGBTI+ youth. Finally, the strategy launched major research projects to collect accurate data on the lived experiences of LGBTI+ youth to fill historical gaps in official statistics.
Evaluation and Sustainability
The evaluation and maintenance of Ireland’s LGBTI+ National Youth Strategy 2018–2020 included mechanisms for monitoring implementation across government departments, but evidence of a comprehensive evaluation of its overall impact on LGBTI+ young people’s educational outcomes is limited. The measures were therefore implemented through a combination of legislation, guidance, resources, and institutional changes rather than through a single evaluable programme. This makes it difficult to attribute changes in well-being or inclusion directly to the strategy.
Transferability Potential
The Irish strategy illustrates how LGBTI+ inclusion can be integrated across existing education, health, child protection and youth policies rather than addressed through a single school intervention. Transfer to other contexts would require cross-sector coordination, practical resources for schools, and alignment with existing equality and child-protection frameworks. It also highlights the value of combining national strategic commitments with concrete tools and initiatives that schools can implement locally, such as practical guidance, anti-bullying frameworks, and curriculum reform.
The added value would be in not only presenting the example but reflecting in each step on what policy makers / knowledge brokers can learn from the reform and be used in their own contexts.