Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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146. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline the mechanism and criteria for a Youthreach programme to apply and receive funding for DEIS status supports; if his attention has been drawn to difficulties or a lack of awareness among Youthreach management on the process to access the funding; and his plans to update the current management on the scheme. [12272/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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DEIS is my Department's main policy initiative to tackle educational disadvantage. The DEIS Plan 2017 sets out my Department's goals, targets and actions for improving the learning outcomes and overall life chances of children and young people at greatest risk of not reaching their potential by virtue of their socio- economic circumstances.

The Youthreach programme is delivered and funded through SOLAS, the Further Education and Training Authority and the 16 Education and Training Boards. Youthreach is a programme for early school leavers and offers vocational and general education programmes to provide young people with the skills and qualifications required to access further education, training and employment. Youthreach is resourced in an entirely different way than the school system and is not supported through the DEIS programme. Youthreach centres have low staff student ratios to support individualised learner planning and a model that blends education and youthwork approaches.

Accordingly I have no plans to extend the DEIS programme to Youthreach.