Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The area of guidance is an important one and it can be underestimated. The problem we can see with it is that there is guidance in a number of areas. There is guidance in the education and training boards. There is guidance if one goes into the Intreo office. There is guidance in schools. We need an integrated approach. Part of the strategy is that there is a proper integrated guidance service so we can ensure that at the right stages of one's life, and in each area, one gets enough guidance. For example, case workers in the Intreo offices were working on the basis of one case worker to 800 clients, and it is now down to one to 500 clients. Under the planned changes, with the private operators coming in, there will be one case officer to 200 applicants. One will move from having only five or ten minutes of career guidance or advice to being able to get the optimal offer of 30 or 40 minutes. This is an issue we recognise in both the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Social Protection. It must be co-ordinated much better. The integrated guidance strategy, which is down for next year and which is being worked on, will probably address the concerns of the Deputy, and of us all, as to whether people are getting enough guidance at the key time of intervention.

Guidance covers a lot. As I stated at the guidance counsellors' conference at the weekend, it is a difficult job because it is not only picking a career for a person but giving him or her the tools to rebuild his or her life and pick the correct pathway, be it a career or education, for himself or herself. It takes a lot of time with the client to understand where he or she is coming from. It is probably important that we get a community approach to this through all the Departments and ensure we tick the box properly. The matter is getting the attention it needs. Naturally, as always, we would like to have as many hours of resources as we can, but we are trying also to balance the books as best we can. The integrated strategy is the correct way to go.