Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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109. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the current number of participants in the JobBridge and community employment schemes, by county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41296/15]

Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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JobBridge, the National Internship Scheme, commenced in July 2011 and to date has attracted the participation of 44,388 participants and over 18,000 Host Organisations. There are currently 4,865 participants on the programme.

The JobBridge Scheme was introduced as an extraordinary response to the unprecedented collapse in the economy – particularly the sharp increase in unemployment. Independent research indicates a progression rate to employment of over 60%, the highest of any of our employment schemes.

Notwithstanding the success of the scheme, the Department has commissioned another independent evaluation. The results of the evaluation are expected in early 2016 and will inform any further changes to the scheme.

Community Employment (CE) is the largest employment programme administered by the Department and is a valuable resource for both jobseekers and communities. Currently, there are almost 24,000 participants and nearly 1,400 supervisors employed on the programme at a cost of approximately €373m in 2015.

As the Deputy will be aware, CE aims to enhance the employability and mobility of disadvantaged and unemployed persons by providing work experience and training opportunities for them within their communities. In addition, it helps long-term unemployed people to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to a regular work routine.

The table below outlines the current and total numbers of JobBridge and Community Employment participants by County.

Table 1. JobBridge Participants by County - Figures as at 19^thNovember, 2015

Table 2. Community Employment participants by County - Figures as at 31 October, 2015