Four hundred students from disadvantaged backgrounds will be awarded scholarships to attend Gaeltacht summer colleges this summer, Minister for the Gaeltacht Jack Chambers will announce on Thursday.

Mr Chambers has approved €400,000 each year over the next three years for the initiative which will allow students from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend summer colleges and experience Gaeltacht life, with social inclusion at the heart of the initiative.

The new figure represents a major funding increase and expansion of the programme which was previously launched as a pilot scheme in 2019, with 50 scholarships on offer.