The back to education initiative announced in the Government's White Paper on Adult Education, Learning for Life, provides for a merging and continuation of existing levels of provision under Youthreach, Traveller, vocational training opportunity scheme – VTOS – and post-leaving certificate courses, allied with a significant expansion of part-time options.
To address needs in this area, the back to education initiative will provide for an improvement in the student teacher ratio to 10:1 for all participants accessing the programme with less than upper second-level education. Discussions are currently under way to finalise a the funding framework and implementation arrangements for the expansion of part-time options, and the 10:1 ratio is being examined in that context. I hope to implement the first round of the new initiative later this year with the funds being provided under the Government's national development plan.