David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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125. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the way his Department is supporting those from disadvantaged backgrounds and marginalised groups to access further and higher education; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2047/24]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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An inclusive higher education system is a national and European priority. Supporting Inclusion is one of the six strategic goals set out in my Department’s Statement of Strategy.

At Higher Education level the new National Access Plan which was launched on 31st August 2022 aims to support inclusion and diversity in our student body, address the wider struggles and challenges for students, and deliver sustainable progress. It recognises the needs of vulnerable learners, the most marginalised and those with special and additional needs.

The new plan identifies a number of priority groups who are underrepresented in Higher Education including students who are socio-economically disadvantaged, students with a disability including an intellectual disability and students who are members of the Traveller & Roma Communities. The ambitions of the plan are

1. that the higher education student body, at all levels and across all programmes, reflects the diversity and social mix of Ireland’s population, and
2. that our higher education institutions are inclusive, universally designed environments which support student success and outcomes, equity and diversity.

• Improvements to the Student Grant Scheme including increases in maintenance rates.
• An increase to the number of 1916 Tier one and Tier 2 Bursary's which will total 600 for the 2023/2024 academic year.
• The average annual allocation of the Fund for Students with a Disability funding to the higher education sector is in the region of €7.6 million. I have increased the fund for 2024 by 5% to over €8 million.
• The Student Assistance Fund has funding of over 19m available for the 2023/2024 academic year
• Universal Design measures have been progressed with 19 institutions receiving a total of €3m in funding in 2022 to support projects.
• A call for proposals to enhance provision for students with an intellectual disability has recently closed and I will be announcing the details of successful projects in the next number of weeks.
• A new strand of funding to support Traveller & Roma participation in Higher Education is providing funding of €450,000 per year for 3 years to support initiatives.
• Additional funding of €700,000 was provided to institutions for community engagement with new National Access Plan priority groups and the newly announced DEIS schools in 2022.
• Last year I announced the creation of the National Tertiary Office and the creation of new tertiary programmes which provide a pathway into higher education outside the CAO system.
• A new part time fees scheme will be introduced from September 2024 to provide fee support to eligible part-time students attending specified publicly funded undergraduate courses leading to a major award. This is an important new initiative which will open the doors of higher education to many groups who could not participate in full-time programmes.

Further Education and Training (FET) learners are diverse, coming to FET from a range of socio-economic backgrounds, language and cultural groups, gender identities, family status, and ability profiles. The FET Sector plays an important role in providing opportunities and pathways for individuals from priority groups who may be under-represented in the education sector and to help take learners to where they want to go.

Fostering Inclusion is one of the three core pillars around which the Further Education and Training Strategy (FET) 2020-2024 is built. The FET sector is committed to increasing levels of inclusion through the provision of high quality, more accessible and flexible education and training programmes and supports suited to the identified needs of individuals with the aim of enabling every citizen to participate fully in society.

SOLAS, working closely with my Department, has established multi-annual strategic performance agreements with the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs). ETBs are measured on their performance across 12 National targets including ‘Widening Participation’ of marginalised groups in their provision. The specific target groups are:

• Travellers;
• Roma;
• Persons with a Disability;
• Refugees and Asylum Seekers.

The FET sector is developing inclusive learning environments and providing supports that enhance learning experiences for those at risk of social exclusion. Work is ongoing to embed Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles in the sector, increasing the opportunities for learners to successfully progress on their programmes. Furthermore, the Adult Educational Guidance and Information Service (AEGIS) available at each ETB can support learners on their journey, providing critical guidance on pathways.