Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will amend operational guidelines on the back to education allowance to allow consideration to be given to awarding the back to education allowance when it can be demonstrated that a lower or equivalent level qualification is required to secure progression or employment. [44558/12]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The back to education allowance (BTEA) is a second chance education opportunities scheme designed to remove the barriers to participation in second and third level education. It enables those in receipt of certain social welfare payments to continue to receive a payment while pursuing an approved full-time education course that leads to a higher qualification than that already held. One of the key requirements to access this scheme is that a person must progress in the level of education held with reference to the national framework of qualifications among others. It is my intention to retain the requirements in respect of progression in education as a feature of the BTEA in line with the necessity that State support for education purposes is grounded on a student progressing from one qualification level to a higher one. The Springboard initiative funded by the Department of Education and Skills is available to unemployed and those previously self-employed to up-skill or re-skill in areas where sustainable employment opportunities may arise as the economy recovers. This can involve undertaking a course of study at a lower level of qualification already possessed by the applicant. Participants on jobseeker's payments may pursue Springboard courses and retain their payments while an entitlement exists under the PTEO.