The back to education allowance is a second chance education opportunities programme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force.
At present, to qualify for participation an applicant must be, among other things, in receipt of a relevant social welfare payment for at least six months. The qualifying period will be increased from six months to 15 months for new applicants intending to commence third level courses of study, with effect from September 2004.
The scheme was always intended for the benefit of people who had difficulty finding employment. For them, the scheme provided an opportunity which might enable them to improve their qualifications and thus their prospects of obtaining work. It was never intended to be an alternative form of support for people entering the third level education system.
One of the factors that influenced me in changing the qualification conditions is the fact that, in practice, some people go on the live register for six months or so specifically to qualify for the back to education allowance. The scheme is intended to assist people with a history of long-term dependence on social welfare. It is not intended to be a parallel third level grant scheme for people who were already planning to study at third level.
The same arguments do not apply at second level. The qualifying condition will remain at 6 months for people who wish to pursue a second level qualification. Time spent pursuing a second level course with the assistance of the back to education scheme will count towards meeting the 15-months qualification condition for the third level option.
Participants already pursuing third level courses of study with the assistance of the scheme will not be affected by this change. In summary the change affects people who have been unemployed for less than 15 months and who wish to commence claiming the allowance in order to pursue a third level qualification.
I have decided to restructure the back to education allowance in this way to ensure that this support retains its focus on the more vulnerable groups in our community, particularly people who do not have a second level education qualification and who are at risk of becoming dependent on social welfare payments on a long-term basis. I want to ensure that available resources are aimed at those in greatest need of an intervention to prevent them from drifting into long-term unemployment. This change recognises the more urgent need for intervention in the case of people who have not completed formal second level education.
I believe I have ensured, in a situation where priorities had to be set and choices made, that those in the greatest need of assistance under the BTEA scheme have been protected.