Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 28 March 2023

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Autism

Autism Policy: Discussion (Resumed)

Ms Lisa Marie Clinton:

Let me start with a table of reference I found on the Department's website on the utilisation of the grant. Year on year, from 2015 to 2019, the numbers have decreased from 35 successful applications in 2015 to only 24 in 2019. This totals over €50,000 in funding to support someone, in whatever way it might be, to be successful in employment. A few years ago, I completed a report with the support of employment agencies on their feedback which I presented internally as well. One of the criteria with this grant is that, whether the employer applies first-----