Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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202. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if funding will be made available to part-time students for Irish Sign Language interpretation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44238/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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My Department allocates funding annually to the Fund for Students with Disabilities (FSD), which supports circa 14,000 students annually.The Fund provides financial support to approved higher education institutions to ensure that they are adequately resourced to cater for the needs of students with disabilities.

In the 2018/19 academic year, the Fund began supporting students on part-time courses on a pilot phased approach and this has continued into the 2019/20 academic year.

Deaf supports, including sign language interpreters, are covered under the Fund where students are attending an approved course in an approved institution. The institution to which the Deputy refers is not an approved institution.