Mr. R?n?n Hession:

To add to that, we work with AHEAD in the higher education sector. It does placements for graduates in particular in the colleges and gets them work placements. More than 600 graduates have been placed. About 10% or 11% of them are people with an autism diagnosis. It tries to have a direct engagement with employers. We also have various schemes such as the workplace experience programme. About 40% of people who get placements under that programme have an apparent disability. We have a direct engagement where we can get employers involved. As the Chairman said, they require staffing. It is difficult to get these things up and running directly from the Department.

We run a programme under the Dormant Accounts Fund where we issue calls for proposals for employment initiatives for disabled people. A number of autism groups are funded under that programme, including Specialisterne, which the Chairman has mentioned. We have used funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund for the last couple of years. That has been extended into this year because there is new European funding coming on stream. Later this year we will have to do a call for proposals. In other words, we will invite projects to come forward with their ideas. That will go into the process which is managed by Pobal and sponsored by the Department. There is a way for such projects and programmes to get funding. That is under the Dormant Accounts Fund heading for now, but European funding is due to come on stream later this year. In terms of bureaucracy, we have to go through the stations of the cross at European level to get formal approval, but it will come through. Anyone who was already getting that funding last year has been notified and the fund has been carried over to this year. The process allowed us to get them on board. In other words, there are pockets of activity. There are groups at local level taking initiatives to deal with this very type of issue. There is a funding stream that we have used in recent years which will continue under a European banner in the years to come. That is the main vehicle by which we support such projects.