Written Answers Nos. 49-56
49. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an up-to-date assessment on Tréimhse Foghlama sa Ghaeltacht and the reason the Mary Immaculate College in Limerick feels it necessary to put on an extra Gaeilge module this semester; and the reason the cost is so high to avail of this training. [40043/14]
View answerChanges to the structure and content of the Gaeltacht Placement arose from the Teaching Council's accreditation criteria, published in June 2011 (Initial Teacher Education: Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers) which provide, inter alia, for "an extended and reconceptualised Gaeltacht residency which will now form part of the overall programme and be under the direct jurisdiction of the teacher education providers." My Department supports the changes as contributing to overall quality improvement in initial teacher education, however, I do not have a role in assessing the Tréimhse Foghlama sa Ghaeltacht.
Initial teacher education providers such as Mary Immaculate College have responsibility for quality assuring the content, teaching and assessment of the Gaeltacht element of initial teacher education programmes. These must comply with the Teaching Council's criteria but the exact format and content of the courses, including the number of modules delivered to students, is a matter for the institutions themselves. Any concerns in this regard should be taken up directly with the provider in the first instance.
I can appreciate that supporting a student through third level education can be challenging. The decision to abolish the gaeltacht placement grant was not taken lightly and was publicised in advance of implementation so that students would be aware of the new arrangements before embarking on Initial Teacher Education programmes. I am not in a position to reinstate funding to this area.
50. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 215 of 6 November 2014, if she will put on the record of Dáil Éireann the findings and recommendations of the report of a value for money review of small primary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45193/14]
View answerI am currently reviewing the Value for Money Report for small schools along with my Government Colleagues.
I intend to publish the Report as soon as those considerations have been finalised. I also intend to outline my response to the report at that time.
51. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if interim payment will issue on humanitarian grounds in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare who is awaiting the result of a jobseeker's allowance appeal and who has no income, is a single parent and has three young children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45569/14]
View answerThe person concerned has been contacted in relation to her application for supplementary welfare allowance and an appointment will be made with her to attend her local Community Welfare Service.
52. Deputy Alan Farrell asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the way she will address the situation whereby young persons aged 24 and under, whose parents earn over the threshold, are ineligible to receive jobseeker's allowance, therefore cannot avail of Government supported work experience schemes and subsequently cannot gain employment due to their lack of experience; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45595/14]
View answerGiven the scale of unemployment levels, the key objective of activation policy and labour market initiatives is to offer assistance to those most in need of support in securing work and achieving financial self-sufficiency. This policy objective prioritises scarce resources to those in receipt of qualifying welfare payments, and in particular those who have been receiving such payments for extended periods. Accordingly the employment services and schemes provided by the Department are focused in the first instance on this cohort of unemployed people.
Persons who are unemployed but not in receipt of a social welfare payment are not, however, disqualified from receiving training and employment supports. A range of services are in fact available to such people.
For example employment services, such as advice on job-search activities and the use of online job search tools, are available to people if they register with the Department’s employment services offices, regardless of their social welfare status.
Further, unemployed persons not in receipt of payments may also be eligible to avail of up-skilling opportunities, for example through ETB (formerly FÁS) training for unemployed people, although they are not eligible to receive a training allowance while undertaking the course (they may receive some financial support for travel and meals).
The Work Placement Programme operated by my Department is also open to persons not in receipt of a social welfare payment, although the participant will not receive a payment while on the programme.
An unemployed person who does not qualify for a social welfare payment due to the assessment of their means may be eligible to sign for social insurance contribution credits. Persons who sign for credits for three months (78 days) of the last six months are eligible to participate in the JobBridge programme.
The number of young people who do not qualify for Jobseeker’s Allowance (JA) because of parental means is relatively low. In the most recent twelve-month period for which data are available, some 52,808 awards of JA were made to young people under the age of 25. Over the same period, 1,579 JA claims from young people were disallowed on the grounds that the applicant’s means (from all sources) were deemed to be in excess of the prescribed limits. Disallowances on grounds of means thus represented a maximum of 3% of the claims actually awarded to young people. This would include cases where the means involved were those of the applicant or the applicant’s spouse, not just parental means cases. At present the Department of Social Protection is not planning to change the eligibility criteria for JA.
53. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of JobBridge participants in County Kerry at present; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45635/14]
View answer54. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number and percentage of JobBridge participants in County Kerry that have gone on to full-time employment within six months of finishing their internship; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45636/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 53 and 54 together.
JobBridge has made very significant progress since it came into operation on 1 July 2011. As at 20 November 2014, a total of 35,381 internships have commenced with 6,700 participants currently on a JobBridge placement, and 1,933 internship posts currently advertised on the JobBridge website.
In County Kerry, there have been a total of 1047 internships since the scheme commenced. Of this, 232 are currently on a placement, with 815 internships completed at this point in time. A total of 232 of these interns progressed into employment, either with their host organisation or another organisation on completion of their JobBridge placement. This represents a 28% progression rate, immediately on completion of the scheme.
Progression into employment on completion of an internship understates the impact of the scheme as many people use their work experience to apply for and secure employment in the months immediately following the internship. In this regard, an independent evaluation of JobBridge found that 61% of individuals who have participated in the scheme have progressed into employment within five months of completing their internship placements. A total of 45.2% of these were in full-time permanent employment, 9.3% were in part-time permanent employment, 35.0% were in full-time temporary employment and 10.5% were in part-time temporary employment. The majority of these have progressed to employment with their host organisations, while the remainder took the skills and experiences gained during their internship to employment in the wider labour market. This high level of progression into employment exceeds that of similar schemes across Europe.
I am confident that JobBridge will continue as a positive activation programme, and that the scheme will display similar progression rates into employment, into the future.
55. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the position regarding a carer's allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45670/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer on 20 November 2014 who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements.
56. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection when her Department will reach a final decision on a matter (details supplied) regarding meter readers. [45671/14]
View answerThis matter is the subject of ongoing investigation in the Department.
It would not be appropriate for me to comment on the likely outcome of these investigations at this stage.
