Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Ahearn for raising this important issue.

The Ability programme was introduced in June 2018 as pre-activation programme for young people with disabilities. Funding for this programme amounts to €16 million over a three-year period and it is being provided jointly under the European Social Fund employability inclusion and learning operational programme and the Exchequer with funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund, which falls under the remit of the Departments of Social Protection and Rural and Community Development.

The aim of the Ability programme is to bring young people with disabilities who are not work-ready closer to the employment market. The programme supports over 2,600 young people with disabilities aged between 15 to 29 years of age.It is being delivered by 27 community and voluntary groups from all around the country, including three in Tipperary, some in Connemara and Fingal LEADER Partnership in my area.

Pobal has been contracted by my Department to manage the Ability programme. It was a condition of the current three-year funding arrangement that the programme would end at the end of June 2021. An ongoing evaluation of the programme is being undertaken. It will explore the effectiveness of the different approaches and actions applied in bringing young people with disabilities who are not work ready closer to the labour market, in addition to examining impacts on the participants. The evaluation is to be conducted over the duration of the programme, and it will conclude in June 2021. An interim evaluation report has been submitted to the Department. This evaluation will feed into future programmes in this area.

The Minister has taken a strong interest in this issue. In mid-January, she met a delegation of Ability providers to hear their concerns. She is very conscious that Ability providers are looking for some certainty with regard to the year ahead and reassurances regarding the Department's wider commitment to advance pre-employment supports for young people with disabilities so they will have the opportunities they need to progress into employment. Following on from the meeting in January, the Minister asked officials in the Department to examine this matter and revert to her with proposals. I am pleased to advise Senator Ahearn that, just this morning, the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, had a follow-up meeting with the Ability providers' subgroup. It was a very useful and informative exchange. Everybody on the call this morning was in agreement on the need to maximise a number of supports that will contribute to the development of these young people, their future economic independence, their standard of living and overall well-being.

The positive news is that we have found a way forward so that the good work being carried out by Ability projects across the country can continue. There will be a multi-faceted approach to this that will involve an extension of the current programme together with further short-term funding for Ability projects to allow them to continue. The Minister will be announcing full details in due course. The subgroup we met this morning supports this approach, which provides options for meeting the needs of participants in the Ability programme, and also progressing the various pre-employment supports for young people with disabilities so that they will have the opportunities they need to transition into employment.

I can give the Senator a little more detail. The approach we intend to pursue now includes a combination of an extension of the current programme to the end of August, an application process that is to open in April and that will allow successful applicants to continue uninterrupted from August into September and beyond as part of a new programme.