Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 October 2023
118. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the action he is taking to expand the capacity of apprenticeships, and to expand the supports available to learners and employers who take up apprenticeship opportunities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45534/23]
View answerBeing demand-led in nature, there are no restrictions on the number of apprentices that can be registered. The current buoyant labour market, coupled with the recognition of apprenticeship as a valuable employment and skills development opportunity, is a welcome endorsement of this Government’s support of, and ambitions for, Apprenticeships in the tertiary sector
The ‘Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025’ sets out new ways of structuring, funding, and promoting apprenticeships to make apprenticeship accessible to employers and learners. The ambitions of the Plan spans both financial and non-financial measures.
Significant financial supports to employers introduced include:
• The annual Employer Grant of €2,000 per apprentice means that employers of all apprentices now have access to financial support, either through direct payment of allowances to apprentices or through the grant.
• The gender-based bursary of €2,666 is available for those who employ apprentices in the minority gender on any national apprenticeship programme with greater than 80% representation of a single gender.
Non-financial supports to employers introduced include:
• The One More Job initiative provides tailored financial and training supports to Irish micro- and small-businesses who employ one or more apprentices in 2023.
• Free online mentoring for employers new to training apprentices, grants towards training costs, and guidance from the One More Job team during the first year of training.
Supports available to apprentices includes:
• The student contribution applies annually to all free fee eligible students and the current rate is €3,000 per annum. Budget 2024 ensures that apprentices will specifically benefit from a one-third reduction in the Apprenticeship Student Contribution Fee in the 2023/24 academic year
• Budget 2024 provides for additional funding of €400,000 for a bursary for apprentices from under-represented groups
• A ‘Facts, Faces, Futures’ campaign launched this year aims to ensure that every girls’ school in the country has access to comprehensive information and briefings on apprenticeship options
• Facts: Apprenticeship is packed with diverse role models and women’s success stories, and growing numbers of women apprentices and graduates of the apprenticeship route
• Faces: They are employers, chefs, craftspeople, cyber security specialists, international financial analysts, creators, team members, leaders
• Futures: More and more girls in school can take inspiration from these role models, seeing what they can be and shaping their future careers
Building on the measures taken over 2021-23, Budget 2024 provides €67m additional investment into the apprenticeship system. This will allow craft apprenticeship to continue to grow from 13,000 places in 2022 to over 16,000 places in 2024.
I am satisfied that these measures and supports will have a significant impact in ensuring greater capacity and uptake in the apprenticeship system.
