Leaving Cert anxiety and disappointment: UCD expert Annette Clancy says dealing with unmet expectations is a “critical life skill” as results loom for Ireland’s biggest Leaving Cert cohort on record. School device costs: Parents say they’re being “press-ganged” into buying laptops/tablets despite Education Minister Hildegarde Naughton’s assurances that ownership isn’t required. Childcare affordability: Budget 2027 is set to push a €200-a-month childcare cap, with ministers framing it as tangible cost-of-living relief. Women’s history and pensions: A Cork Cumann na mBan veteran’s fight for a military pension is revisited through a Humanities journal article highlighting how hunger and poverty followed service. Health and awareness: A Limerick mum shares how a rash led to breast cancer diagnosis, urging people to be “breast aware” ahead of Breast Cancer Ireland’s Very Pink Run. Community and culture: Rose of Tralee Dublin Rose Suad Mooge speaks on how support has “drowned out” racist trolls after her win. Food safety: FSAI closure orders in July hit 13 Irish food businesses, including a Dublin restaurant over cockroach infestation. Sport and identity: Galway’s soccer team plays Wauwatosa in Milwaukee’s Irish Fest, celebrating long-running sister-city ties.