Averil Power (Fianna Fail)
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I thank everyone for their presentations. It has been great to have everybody together in one meeting. I have always felt that we undervalue vocational and community education and I was encouraged by Mr. O'Toole's comments on how that is all being brought together now to put a structure and strategy in place. It is a hugely important area. Ms Brady's point on the need to value education was well made. While it is important to focus on the economy, we must ensure we have the right courses to give people the skills for the jobs that are actually there and help people get out to work. The personal development aspect is also huge. One of the providers I was most impressed with in my area was Laneview, which works with people who have been in prison with drug problems and may never get into formal employment. It is great to see the journey those people have gone through, most of them having dropped out of education at age 12, to get accreditation. There is great joy in the room for themselves and their families when they are presented with their certificates. That is what should be recognised rather than just formal metrics. It is important to remember that education involves the whole spectrum from those who have had very little interaction and left school early with few skills right up to PhDs. We should not lose things in the middle. Those early leavers need the opportunity of motivation and personal development. I am encouraged by the fact that there have been developments in bringing it all together.

One of the other providers in my area provides for thousands of people every year on FETAC, SOLAS and Safe Pass courses. I asked them yesterday what was the one thing they wanted. All they ask is that bodies like SOLAS, ETBI, QQI and City and Guilds recognise that professional resources exist in the wider community, understand what is going on at ground level and consult providers. Great work is being done by different community groups which have been built up over the years and have huge experience in disadvantaged areas in particular. For a long time, all they have been asking for is to be considered, listened to and planned for, and, hopefully, we are finally starting to see that structure.

Many of the questions have been asked. Witnesses will come back to the questions Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked on how we are advertising this sector. Are people going into schools and telling them about apprenticeships and breaking down those difficulties of understanding about what is vocational education? Is the right provision there now? I accept what Mr. O'Toole says about working with the Intreo centres to ensure they are aware of provision. I had a young man on to me recently who was able to show me a letter he received. He had gone for a job with a construction company, which had sent him back a letter saying that while they were very impressed with his interview and he was suitable for the position, he needed one thing first. All he needed was a three day traffic management course. He went to the social welfare office to tell them and he went to the FÁS office and was told he could not be offered the course. I was stunned because it is a three day course. I do not know if that is just a localised issue involving the person he was dealing with or whether there is a structure being put in place to ensure we are matching people properly with courses like that. It is particularly about small, simple things. He could be on the dole for three more months because he was not sent for a course for three days. Is the system starting to come together to ensure those issues do not occur?