Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael)
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45. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to provide an update on efforts to increase the number of apprenticeship spaces; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22756/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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Increasing apprenticeship delivery capacity is a priority for my Department.

Strong demand in apprenticeship coupled with an extremely buoyant construction sector has seen craft apprenticeship registrations rise by 25% since 2019.

Following analysis in July 2023 showing that some apprentices were waiting overlong for their off-the-job training, a plan was developed by the National Apprenticeship Office (NAO) to significantly reduce craft training delays and increase craft training capacity.

During Estimates 2024, €67m was allocated to grow the apprenticeship system, bringing total funding in 2024 to €298m. The past number of years have seen significant investment in apprenticeship. Additional funding has been provided as follows:

€17m capital investment was made in apprenticeship in 2023 to expand existing facilities, develop new facilities, and for additional equipment and tools.

ETBs have also been mandated by SOLAS to deliver three intakes of apprenticeship delivery per workshop per year.

The NAO are leading a national recruitment campaign which has resulted in 58 new instructor posts so far and with more to be advertised when capital projects come on-stream. In addition over 80 instructor posts have been converted from fixed term to permanent to help support retention.

All of these actions have directly led to a significant growth in the number of places available for phase 2 off-the-job training. As of April 2024 there are 7,545 places, which is an increase of 34% from 2023 when there were 5,613 places and an increase of 79% from 2019 when there were 4,220 places.

The implementation of the plan by the NAO and the strong growth in apprenticeship capacity has meant that the number of apprentices waiting 6 months or longer for their off the job training has nearly halved from 5,319 in October 2023 to 2,976 in April 2024.

It is my priority to maintain momentum and continue growing the apprenticeship system, and ensure that there are enough training places for current and future skills needs.