Written answers

Tuesday, 1 February 2022

Department of Education and Skills

Third Level Education

Photo of Sorca ClarkeSorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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590. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the engagement he has had to date with further and higher education institutions to put in place a strategy to develop new fast-track, mid-career educational models that can meet the rapidly evolving needs of the new economy as per the programme for Government. [5150/22]

Photo of Niall CollinsNiall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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Underpinned by the framework of the National Skills Strategy 2016-2025 and the Regional Skills Fora, a core principle of skills policy development in Ireland is partnership between enterprise and the tertiary sector. My Department continues to support a range of programmes to upskill employees to meet the evolving needs of the economy.

The Skills to Advance initiative was launched by SOLAS in 2018 and is delivered through the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). It aims to equip employees with the skills to progress in their current job, or to take advantage of new job opportunities. Targeting support for vulnerable groups in the workforce it also supports SMEs who need assistance to invest in and develop their workforce. New initiatives in key areas such as leadership and management have been rolled along with sectoral initiatives for the Hospitality and Tourism sector to assist a sector greatly impacted by COVID-19. During 2021, Skills to Advance expanded its offering to include developing Green Skills for SMEs. Collaboration with over 30 enterprise agencies is central to effective implementation of these new initiatives and ensures that the Skills to Advance initiative continues to be agile and responsive to changing skills needs.

The Innovation through Collaboration Fund, introduced as part of the Skills to Advance initiative, provides ETBs with an opportunity to bid for additional funding to enable a major step-up in innovation in employee development supports and training opportunities for individuals and enterprise. 10 proposals were awarded some €3.3m under the 2019 Innovation through Collaboration Call across a range of sectors. A further 7 proposals were received under the 2021 Call and I understand that SOLAS expects to confirm the funded proposals shortly.

The Skills for Work programme also continues to provide training opportunities to help employees deal with the basic skills demands of the workplace.

Within the Higher Education institutions, modular courses have been introduced. These courses are shorter, more focused and offered in a flexible manner, allowing people to gain important skills without taking a considerable period away from work. They represent a new route into lifelong learning, and provide upskilling and reskilling opportunities for those who need it, while ensuring that they remain close to the labour market.

My Department also funds Skillnet Ireland, which provides a wide range of talent development and upskilling supports primarily though the core Skillnet Business Networks programme.

Finally, eCollege is the SOLAS-funded online training facility providing a range of high quality interactive online learning courses in business, project management, information technology, graphic design, web design, digital marketing, software development and basic computer literacy. eCollege courses have been temporarily made available free of charge as additional supports to those impacted by Covid-19.

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