Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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56. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the supports provided by her Department to social welfare recipients who have a qualification in a discipline where there are limited opportunities for employment and who wish to seek third level education in another discipline so that their prospects of employment would be improved; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43133/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I understand that the Deputy is referring to supports to a person on a social welfare payment from the Department attending a full-time third level course of study. 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 by enabling those eligible to 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. A person wishing to pursue BTEA will have to satisfy a number of conditions such as being of a certain age, in receipt of a prescribed social welfare payment for a specified time period, pursuing a full time course of study leading to a recognised qualification in a recognised college and progressing in the level of education held by the client with reference to the national framework of qualifications (NFQ) among others. BTEA guidelines are in the main in line with the mechanisms in place for student support type schemes administered by the Department of Education and Skills. State support for education purposes is grounded on a student progressing from one qualification level to a higher one. The progression criteria are essential and apply to all courses of study. The BTEA scheme was never intended to be an alternative form of funding for people entering or re-entering the third level education system.

A person who wishes to engage in part time day, evening or weekend courses or more intensive short duration courses of education and training while retaining their jobseekers payments may be eligible under that the part time education option (PTEO). People must continue to satisfy the conditions of being available for and genuinely seeking employment on an on-going basis.

Recent education and training interventions supported by the Department in 2013 include Springboard, MOMENTUM and ICT Skills programme. Springboard was launched in June 2013 with 6,000 free places on part-time conversion courses of less than one year duration that have a labour market focus. MOMENTUM supports the provision of free education and training projects to allow 6,500 jobseekers (who are unemployed for 12 months or more) to gain skills and to access work opportunities in identified growing sectors. The ICT Skills programme provides 769 free fees places for level 8 conversion programmes in 2013. In addition, the Department also supports the provision of wide variety of training through networks of private sector companies, in a range of sectors and regions, supported by Skillnets Ltd via the PTEO.