Mr. Paul Skinnader:

In the programmes we deliver and the application processes for the organisations we support, they have to engage with the people we are going to support. That is a requirement of the application process. It is part of the translation of policy into programme development that the application process to any of the programmes has to be based on the needs of those with a disability.

WorkAbility is an interesting programme that is a follow-on to the Ability programme. WorkAbility is co-financed by ESF and led by the Department of Social Protection. It has a budget of more than €30 million and opened in 2023 for applications. Projects that have applied will run from the beginning of this year to the end of 2028. Ability was a programme to support people with disabilities into employment and training. The evaluation of that programme identified that other things needed to be done for any follow-on programme. The aim of this particular programme is to ensure people with disabilities are fully supported to find and maintain employment and that the organisations who employ programme participants are supported to ensure their employment is successful.

More than 50 organisations applied and 50 organisations have been supported. That is a mix of local, regional and national projects that focus on bringing people with disabilities aged 16 years and older who are not work-ready or distant from the labour market closer to the labour market. It has really just begun as a programme. It has fairly clear objectives around improving the employability, increasing the employment rates, which we know are low, and facilitating the career progression of participants.

There is a real effort to engage more with employers in order to encourage and support them to develop more accessible and inclusive workplaces and also an effort to pilot new and innovative initiatives to support people with disabilities into employment. It has just begun as a five-year initiative. That is important, and was one of the lessons from the previous programme. People and organisations need time in order to be able to support those with a disability into employment. It has quite an ambitious target, with more than 13,000 participants in the programme. We recently had two events with the organisations, one in Limerick and one in Dublin. We received interesting feedback on what support they are seeking from us, what they are seeking to do among themselves to network and also the kinds of supports they will seek to provide to people with disabilities. We are at the start but it is a really interesting programme.