Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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41. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his Department has plans for further incentives for employers making apprenticeships available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35665/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The ‘Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025’ sets out new ways of structuring, funding, and promoting apprenticeships to make apprenticeship accessible to employers and learners. The Plan seeks to deliver on a target of 10,000 apprenticeship registrations per annum, across a wide range of programmes, by 2025.

The Action Plan is based on feedback from enterprise, the education and training sector and apprentices themselves, among others, and we have listened to the issues and concerns raised.

Nobody understands the skills employers need better than the employers themselves and without their engagement there can simply be no apprenticeships or places on those programmes. That is why we are driving supports, both financial and non-financial, to encourage and support their engagement.

Significant financial supports have been introduced this year under the Action Plan:

- The annual Employer Grant of €2,000 per apprentice means that, for the first time, employers of all apprentices now have access to financial support, either through direct payment of allowances to apprentices or through the grant. This will help to promote engagement with the non-craft programmes, including the development of new programmes.

- The gender-based bursary of €2,666 is available for those who employ apprentices in the minority gender on any national apprenticeship programme with greater than 80% representation of a single gender. It is an expansion of the ‘female bursary’ available to craft apprenticeship employers prior to 2022 and there are currently 42 programmes which meet the criterion.

Employer feedback during the consultation process of the Action Plan highlighted that non-financial supports were particularly important for SME employers. Recognising this, supports to be in place during 2022 include:

- The National Apprenticeship Office will link potential consortia members, education providers, and supporting consortia members and/or provide supports to build in-company training capacity.

- Sector-specific supports to be delivered through apprenticeship consortia to support SME employers.

- A development plan is to be delivered for a user-centred apprenticeship management system to simplify employer participation within and across apprenticeship.

- Proposed amendments to the Industrial Training Act, 1967, included in the Higher Education Authority Bill, 2022, will widen the scope for new apprenticeship programmes in an expanded range of sectors.

The increased diversity of new apprenticeships, many of which have off-the-job training delivered through online or blended learning provides a significant opportunity for widening of access to apprenticeship for rural businesses and learners. In addition, Education and Training Boards, Institutes of Technology and Technological Universities are spread throughout the country and play a very important role in ensuring apprenticeship provision has a strong regional dimension.

Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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42. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will outline the take up of the apprenticeship incentivisation scheme by sector and county in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36762/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As of 3^rdMay 2022 a total of 7,775 applications from 5,067 unique employers had been received for the Apprenticeship Incentivisation Scheme, representing an engagement of 83.2% (based on 6,088 invitees). The total number of employer applications validated and processed for payment to that date was 5,928, covering a total of 8,785 apprentices and equating to payments totalling €17.57m.

Further details as requested by the Deputy are being sought from SOLAS and will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as they are available.

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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43. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the plans that he and his Department have to facilitate apprenticeship programmes at the Atlantic Technological University Mayo campus; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36311/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The new Atlantic Technological University will play a pivotal role in the strategic development of the West and North West. The constituent Institutes have a strong involvement in craft apprenticeship programmes and are committed to delivering apprenticeship education to meet the skills demands of the region.

Apprenticeship training is currently being delivered at phase 4 and phase 6 in four trades in ATU: Carpentry and Joinery, Electrical Installation, Motor Mechanics and Toolmaking. The Insurance Practitioner Apprenticeship (level 8) is offered at the Sligo campus and Manufacturing Engineering Apprenticeships (level 6 and 7) are offered in Galway City. Wood Manufacturing & Finishing is offered at the Letterfrack Campus which is the National Centre for Excellence in Furniture Design and Technology.

New apprenticeship programmes are being evaluated for development across a wide range of disciplines. That brings opportunities for apprenticeships, both traditional and new, to both develop and expand across the new TU, in line with Government Policy as set out in the ‘Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025’, industry needs and collaboration with partners and stakeholders. As with other TUs and Institutes of Technology, ATU is expanding apprenticeship capacity in certain areas as part of the development of apprenticeship nationally and it is open to ATU to consider the best location for delivering this training across its three campuses.