Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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23. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the plans in place to promote the take-up of new apprenticeships by more women, migrants, persons with disabilities and mature applicants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49811/21]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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The Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025 promotes general access, diversity and inclusion in apprenticeship by offering targeted supports to encourage participation from under-represented groups such as women, those with disabilities and those from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Targets and interventions for specific groups will be detailed through an Equity of Access subcommittee of the National Apprenticeship Alliance to ensure that the voice of under-represented groups is integral to the development of the apprenticeship system. The actions set out in the Plan build on the outcomes of the 2018 Review of Pathways to Participation in Apprenticeship which has already resulted in a significant widening of measures to support increased visibility of apprenticeships.

Specific immediate actions in the Action Plan include:

- Extending the bursary of €2,666 which is paid by SOLAS to employers of female apprentices in the 25 craft apprenticeships to encourage them to employ female apprentices to all apprenticeship programmes with greater than 80% representation of a single gender.

- An apprentice bursary/support scheme will be established to fund up to 100 apprentices per year who are experiencing severe socioeconomic disadvantage and who are from target groups, including lone parents, people with disabilities, Travellers and Roma.

- Access to apprenticeship programmes and pre-apprenticeship courses will be clearly labelled as such, with progression routes into apprenticeship clearly identified and information on these courses will be published on www. apprenticeship.ie.

- An employer survey will determine baseline employer attitude and extent of knowledge of supports available to employers for supporting employees with a disability.

I am satisfied that these measures and the implementation process for the Apprenticeship Action Plan overall will have a significant impact in ensuring greater diversity in the apprenticeship population as a whole.

John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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24. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the progress to date under the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025 launched in April 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49817/21]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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Actions in the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025 continue to be implemented, to work towards delivering a flexible and responsive system for employers and potential apprentices, which is attractive and easy to engage with and delivers high standards and sought after qualifications.

A Steering Group, with representatives of SOLAS, the HEA, QQI and the Department is overseeing the broad implementation of the Plan. A Delivery Group with representatives from SOLAS, the HEA and the Department is overseeing the establishment of the National Apprenticeship Office, a key structure which will enable progression of other actions.

Proposed amendments to the Industrial Training Act, 1967 which seek to widen the potential scope of new apprenticeship programmes have been included under the General Scheme of Higher Education Authority Bill, published on the 6th May 2021. The Bill also provides for the statutory recognition of a shared national apprenticeship office between SOLAS and the HEA to facilitate collaboration on the national-level development, monitoring, review and management of the apprenticeship system.

Engagement on developing the Public Service Apprentice Recruitment Plan is progressing, as is work on the inclusion of an apprenticeship/ staff development provision within Public Sector tendering processes.

The Apprenticeship Incentivisation Scheme has supported a significant recovery of apprentice registrations in 2020 and into 2021 and has enabled apprentice registrations to exceed registrations for 2019. By the end of September 2021 there were 5,525 new registrations compared to 3,034 at the same time in 2020 and 4,451 in 2019. It is likely that registrations will comfortably exceed 6,500 this year with continued strong registration in craft evident over the traditionally slow summer period.

In addition engagement with www.apprenticeshipJobs.ie is being encouraged through the expansion of the Apprenticeship Incentivisation Scheme. Information on apprenticeship will be available on the Central Applications Office website so that those making career decisions next year will be able to consider the merits of an apprenticeship.

The work on the Action Plan is running in parallel to work addressing the current backlog for off-the-job, or workshop-based, training. This is underpinned by Government investment of €20 million. Over 4,800 apprentices currently on a waiting list (40% of those waiting) for off-the-job training are on track to commence their training by the end of 2021. 100% will be returned to workshop-based training in 2022.

The Deputy may wish to note that progress towards the achievement of the baseline actions set out in the Action Plan will be reviewed on an annual basis and a report delivered to Government and published, outlining progress and learnings and setting out detailed areas for action in the next phase of delivery of the Plan.