Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 June 2021
885. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a training fund of up to €1,000 is available for persons in receipt of jobseeker’s payment but is not available for participants of JobPath who can only avail of job related training on a discretionary case by case basis such as in the case of a person (details supplied). [31274/21]
View answerJobPath providers have their own discretionary funds available to pay for training or other interventions; the decision to approve or reject any request for funding is solely at the discretion of the JobPath provider.
They will take into account the duration, cost and relevance to the customer’s job goal preferences. The prevalence of employment opportunities in the sector will also be considered along with the likelihood that the customer secures full-time employment upon completion of the course.
Several courses are provided in-house while others are provided by specialist training providers including the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). There are no barriers to any participants pursuing training, including further education and training courses, providing they are relevant to the agreed personal progression plan.
While participants of JobPath do not have access to the Training Support Grant (TSG) provided by the Department, the JobPath companies will on a case by case basis provide similar funding.
I can confirm that the person concerned is currently engaged with JobPath and has been since 28/07/2020. Turas Nua has reviewed the request for funding and has advised the customer that funding would not be considered as their allotted end date on the JobPath programme is 27/07/2021, which is before the course commencement date of 15/08/2021. The customer will be referred back to Intreo services on completion of his JobPath programme. He can apply and be assessed for the Training Support Grant at this point.
