Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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47. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she is satisfied that sufficient support exists for the development and growth of community employment schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1987/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, Community Employment (CE) schemes are typically sponsored by voluntary and community organisations wishing to benefit their community. My Department’s priority in supporting CE is to ensure access to good quality work experience and training qualifications on schemes for jobseekers and other vulnerable groups in order to support their progression into employment. In the context of the economic recovery, my Department undertook a review of the work programmes in 2016. While the primary focus was on CE, the review also looked at other employment programmes such as Tús. Arising from the review, the Government agreed to implement changes to the qualifying conditions for CE in order to broaden access to a wider range of people. These new rules were implemented from July 2017. The qualifying age was reduced to 21 years. In addition, while in general all placements will now be for one year only, if a CE participant is undertaking training to achieve a major award, their time can be extended by up to 2 year to allow them to complete the training which will enhance their overall employment prospects. This allows for 3 years continuous participation on CE. Those over 55 years of age can also remain on CE for three years. In addition, the reference year for CE participation was moved from 2000 to 2007 which ensures that more people can re-qualify for the programme. Overall, these changes improve the way the schemes operate and will allow more people who are long-term unemployed to access them.

The Government is very mindful of the large number of work programme places involved in service delivery and other valuable services around the country. In this regard, if any scheme is experiencing particular recruitment difficulties, they should contact their local Department Intreo Centre for assistance

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.