Apprenticeship Programmes

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 January 2018

Tuesday, 23 January 2018

Ceisteanna (213)

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

213. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Education and Skills to outline the reason for the lack of apprenticeships in areas such as mechanics and HGV; if he will provide a list of the 26 apprenticeship programmes announced during 2017; the locations of these; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3157/18]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills

As the deputy is aware, the Apprenticeship Council is currently overseeing the expansion of the apprenticeship system in Ireland into a range of new sectors of the economy. The Council has now made two calls for apprenticeship proposals inviting consortia of enterprise, professional bodies and education and training providers to submit proposals for apprenticeship programmes to be developed to meet identified skill needs in their sector.

Following the Council’s first call for proposals in 2015 a proposal for a HGV Driver Apprenticeship, with the Irish Road Haulage Association as industry lead, is currently in development and is scheduled to get underway later this year. This programme, which is 3 years in duration, will lead to a level 5 qualification on the National Framework of Qualifications.

Resulting from last year's second call for proposals, last month, I announced 26 new apprenticeship proposals to be further developed into national apprenticeship programmes, including a proposal for a Logistics Associate Apprenticeship, with the Freight Transport Association Ireland as industry lead. This programme, which is 2 years in duration, will lead to a level 6 qualification on the National Framework of Qualifications. It is estimated that the development process will take between 12 and 15 months.

These apprenticeship proposals approved for further development include detail on the wider breadth of the delivery of the apprenticeships and a commitment to the delivery of off-the-job training on a national basis with the appropriate resources and facilities. As consortia further progress their proposals, further detail will become available. A list of the 26 proposals is set out in the following table.

With regard to apprenticeships in mechanics, there are a number of apprenticeships currently on offer in the area such as motor mechanic, heavy vehicle mechanic and agricultural mechanic. Details of these and all other apprenticeships currently on offer can be found at www.apprenticeship.ie.

Number	Title of proposed apprenticeship	Industry lead	Proposed coordinating provider
1.	Applied Horticulture - Level 6 - Duration 2 years	Teagasc	Teagasc
2.	Arboriculture Level 5 Duration 2 years	Caseys Tree Care Ltd, North West Tree Care, Kilcoyne Tree Care, Arborist Ireland	Galway Roscommon ETB
3.	Associate Sales Professional Level 6 Duration 3 years	Sales Sense	Mayo Sligo & Leitrim ETB
4.	CGI Technical Artist (Animation, Games, VFX) Level 9 Duration 2 years	Screen Training Ireland	Dublin IT
5.	Equipment Systems Engineer	SL Controls	University of
	Level 9 Duration 2 years		Limerick
6.	Farm Management Level 7 Duration 4 years	Teagasc	Teagasc
7.	Farm Technician Level 6 Duration 2 years	Teagasc	Teagasc
8.	Geo-Driller Level 6 Duration 3 years	Geological Survey Ireland	IT Carlow
9.	ICT Associate Professional in Cybersecurity Level 6 Duration 2 years	FastTrack into Technology (FIT)	FIT
10.	Lean Sigma Manager Level 9 Duration 2 years	Teleflex	University of Limerick
11.	Logistics Associate Level 6 Duration 2 years	Freight Transport Association Ireland	Dublin IT
12.	Principal Engineer- Professional Doctorate Level 10 Duration 4 years	SL Controls	University of Limerick
13.	Professional Bar Manager Level 6 Duration 2 years	Vintners Association	Griffith College
14.	Professional Hairdressing Level 6 Duration 3 years	Hairdressing Council of Ireland	Limerick & Clare ETB & Image Learning and Development Training Network Ltd
15.	Professional Healthcare Assistant Level 6 Duration 2 years	Kiltipper Woods Care Centre	Griffith College
16.	Quality Assurance Technician Level 7 Duration 3 years	Ibec Biopharma cluster	IT Tallaght
17.	Quality Laboratory Technician Level 6 Duration 2 years	Ibec Biopharma cluster	IT Tallaght
18.	Senior Quantity Surveyor Level 9 Duration 2 years	Society of Charted Surveyors Ireland	Limerick Institute of Technology
19.	Recruitment Practitioner Level 6 Duration 2 years	National Recruitment Federation	National College of Ireland
20.	Scaffolding Level 6 Duration 3 years	Construction Industry Federation	Laois & Offaly ETB
21.	Software System Designer Level 9 Duration 2 years	Lero	University of Limerick
22.	SportTurf Management Level 6 Duration 2 years	Teagasc	Teagasc
23.	Stud Farm Management Level 7 Duration 2 years	Teagasc	Teagasc
24.	Supply Chain Associate Level 7 Duration 3 years	IPICS The Supply Chain Management Institute	University of Limerick
25.	Supply Chain Manager Level 9 Duration 2 years	IPICS The Supply Chain Management Institute	University of Limerick
26.	Supply Chain Specialist Level 8 Duration 2 years	IPICS The Supply Chain Management Institute	University of Limerick