📋 Tender Overview
Date published:
11 June 2026
Education Minister Paul Givan has announced a professional learning summer school for teachers in 2026.
The summer school programme will be delivered by the Higher Education Institutions on behalf of the Department during July and August 2026. It offers a broad range of one and two-day short courses designed to support teachers development needs and the implementation of TransformED, including a focus on support pupils with Special Educational Needs. Announcing the summer school, Paul Givan said: Professional learning summer schools are an effective part of wider teacher professional development in many education systems around the world. They provide a flexible approach to learning, building on learning throughout the year.Through the TransformED Programme, I continue to prioritise professional development for teachers and I am delighted to support these courses which have been developed in partnership with our Higher Education Institutions. I would encourage all those interested to take advantage of this excellent professional learning opportunity. My Department is providing bursaries to supplement the costs of the courses for more than 1200 teachers. St Marys University College is holding its summer school from 1st to 7th July 2026, with applications open from 1st June 2026. The programme includes courses across four key areas: Leadership, SEN, Equity and Inclusion, Pedagogical Excellence and Irish Medium Education. Further details can be found at https://www.stmarys-belfast.ac.uk/teacher-professional-learning-summer-school/(external link opens in a new window / tab)external link opens in a new window / tab Details of summer school provision at the remaining Higher Education Institutions will be published on their respective websites in due course, ahead of the August 2026 delivery.
Notes to editors:
The Department is providing bursaries to support 1,200 teachers to attend this summer school provision, split across the four Higher Education Institutions. The four Higher Education Institutions are St Marys University College, Queens University Belfast, Stranmillis University College and Ulster University.This is the first comprehensive summer professional learning offer in Northern Ireland in over ten years.Further information on TransformED can be found at https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/topics/transformed.For more news from the Department of Education, you can follow us on our social media channels:X @Education_NI (external link opens in a new window / tab)external link opens in a new window / tabFacebook Department of Education NI(external link opens in a new window / tab)external link opens in a new window / tabInstagram de_northern_ireland (external link opens in a new window / tab)external link opens in a new window / tabLinkedIn Department of Education (external link opens in a new window / tab)external link opens in a new window / tab5. Media enquiries to the Department of Education Press Office at Press.Office@education-ni.gov.uk.6. The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service for media enquiries only between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.
