Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 329: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of persons under 25 years on the live register who do not hold a leaving certificate qualification; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9884/10]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Department does not currently hold information in relation to the educational qualifications of its customers, though such information will be collected under the new statistical profiling and case management systems currently being developed.

However, when jobseekers are interviewed by FAS under the National Employment Action Plan or meet with one of this department's facilitators, their existing qualifications are discussed and possible options, such as the Back to Education Allowance, would be outlined to them.

The Back to Education Allowance is a second chance educational opportunities scheme for people on welfare payments who wish to participate in full time education and who would not otherwise be able to do so. It enables qualified people who have been getting a social welfare payment to continue to receive a payment while pursuing an approved full-time education course. Young people who have been out of the formal education system for at least two years may qualify for the Back to Education Allowance once they have been in receipt of a jobseekers payment for at least three months.

BTEA recipients can attend a second-level course of education at any secondary, community, comprehensive or vocational school. The course must be full-time and lead to a certificate recognised by the Department of Education and Science or approved by the Further Education and Training Awards Council.