Ms Lynne Keery:

There are reasonable accommodations for apprenticeship learners, the same as there are for any learners. We have a number of learners in the apprenticeship programmes we have who get additional help with exams, in that they could have a scribe or a reader.

It is difficult to increase the number of women involved in apprenticeships. It is only my opinion but we should be starting right back at the beginning. It is too late to try to sell apprenticeships to people who are 18 years old and about to do their leaving certificate. The majority of women who are signed up for apprenticeships are on the new consortia-based apprenticeships because those tend to be in the traditional places women might work in, like insurance and sales. There is a big bit of work to do on that. It is about changing the mindset of employers and women, but also perhaps of parents and schools, about the traditional routes. Man or woman, if you are interested in working in a field, then that is the apprenticeship or area you should go into. It is very important we start at a really young age for that.