Ms Tara Farrell:

I wish the committee "Good morning," and thank members for the invitation to speak.

AONTAS is a non-governmental membership organisation established in 1969 with more than 500 members from across the lifelong learning spectrum. Our mission is to advocate for the right of all adults in Ireland to quality learning throughout their lives, with a particular emphasis on those who did not benefit from education when they were young or who are under-represented in learning. We know from the various research that low participation rates of the Traveller community in education begin at an early age and continue into adulthood.

The purpose of our submission was first to highlight the historic policy context, which is well known by members of the committee, that is, Mr. Brian Harvey's research in 2013 on the impact of spending cuts, and the 2017 ESRI report and the 2019 Joint Committee on Education and Skills report on education inequality and disadvantage and barriers to education.

In terms of broader policy context, we welcomed the 2019 EUROSTAT figures, which measure Ireland's adult learning participation rate at 12.5%. This indication of greater participation is positive but it is important to note it excludes Travellers living in Traveller-specific accommodation.

The committee will also be aware of the European Commission upskilling pathways initiative which seeks to provide new learning pathways for all citizens but with a focus identified by Government on building pathways to learning for marginalised groups, such as members of the Traveller community.

I refer to the role of community education and how it supports the equality of access to education for under-represented groups. It is a particularly effective way of engaging learners and its supportive environment increases engagement of those who have had previous negative experiences of the formal education system. Community education acts as a first step back to education where learners receive the wrap-around supports that allow them to participate fully in their learning journey.

We know the benefits of community education in terms of overcoming barriers to education and increasing well-being, and we must highlight the disproportionate cuts experienced by the sector over the last decade which curtails providers in responding effectively to the needs of their communities, particularly the Traveller community. First, we ask the joint committee to support the recommendation in this year's report of the Joint Committee on Education and Skills to support community education both through increased funding, and to achieve parity of esteem with other sectors in the formal education system.

In the context of today and our submission, we also have a small number of recommendations: to review the impact of cuts to Traveller education; to highlight the positive role models and success stories of Travellers; to address the non-education barriers to engagement, such as housing and childcare; and to support access by Travellers to accredited adult education courses.

I will hand over now to my colleague, Ms McDonagh Clark.