Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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895.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures being put in place for those with special educational needs within further and higher education; the resources that have been given to this area over the past five years;; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24720/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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At Higher Education level, the fourth National Access Plan: A Strategic Action Plan for Equity of Access, Participation and Success in Higher Education 2022-2028 was published in August 2022. The National Access Plan (NAP) is a key commitment in the Programme for Government with an additional dedicated investment of €35 million. A specific target of 16% for new entrants with a disability has been set in the NAP. After 2 years of the plan 13.8% of students with a disability are attending higher level up from 12.4% in 2022.

The Programme for Access to Higher Education (PATH) Fund is a multi-strand initiative that supports time-bound programmes and projects with innovative approaches to deliver the ambitions, goals, objectives, actions and targets of the National Access Plan. For the first time ever a new Strand, PATH 4, which will be rolled out over two phases is included which targets students with disabilities including those with intellectual disabilities.

PATH 4 Phase 1 – In January 2023, €3 million was announced to support HEIs for the implementation of universal design and inclusive practices on their campuses and enhance opportunities for students with intellectual disabilities in higher education. This fund was increased by an additional €1.8 million in February 2024 to continue the Universal Design progress made and to focus on the provision of supports for Students with Autism as recommended by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Autism.

PATH 4 Phase 2 – In February 2024, my Department announced the roll-out of higher education courses for students with an intellectual disability. With an investment of over €10 million over three years, the courses are to be delivered in 10 higher education colleges across the country and will provide significant opportunities for students. This pilot project will be a significant opportunity for students with an Intellectual disability and will provide guidance and direction for future course provision.

The Fund for Students with Disabilities (FSD) in Higher Education funds HEIs to provide services and support to students with disabilities. FSD is one of the main funding sources supporting participation by students with disabilities in approved further and higher education courses in Ireland.

In December 2023, additional funding to help students with a disability access third level education was announced , increasing the 2024 allocation by 5%, bringing the total to €8 million for the first time ever.

In FET the Fund for Students with a Disability which is administered by SOLAS for the further education and training sector for 2024 will amount to €5.7m, reflecting the additional allocation of €2m to support the progressive roll-out of the FSD across all Further Education programmes. Some of this allocation is being used to fund the increase in the hourly rate payable to Personal Assistants in the ETBs.

The expenditure on the Fund since 2020 is set out in the following table.

The terms of reference for a review of Personal Assistance services funded from the Fund for Students with Disabilities across tertiary education settings are currently being finalised.

Guidance for implementing Universal Design for Learning in FET was published by SOLAS in collaboration with ETBI and AHEAD and its roll-out across the FET sector has been supported by a series of online interactive seminars.

SOLAS also collaborates with a number of agencies on specific initiatives to the participation of people with disabilities, with the funding over the past 5 years set out in the following table:

Specialist Training Provision (STP) is an important aspect of service provision within the Fostering Inclusion pillar of the Further Education and Training (FET) Strategy 2020-2024. STP providers deliver free training courses for people with who require more intensive support than would be available in non-specialist training provision. Entry to specialist training is open to all persons with disabilities and extra support needs.

SOLAS commissioned an independent evaluation of the Specialist Training Provision which offers tailored education and training opportunities for learners with disabilities requiring more intensive support. This provision is available in every ETB with 2,700 learners participating on STP programmes in 2023 at a cost of some €40m. The evaluation is to get evidence-based conclusions and propose recommendations regarding the quality, effectiveness, ongoing relevance and overall value of the training delivered. It will also examine the integration of this training within the broader further education and training provision offered by ETBs. The evaluation is expected by the end of June, following which, SOLAS and my Department will review its findings in consultation with the training providers.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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896.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the steps he is taking to ensure that families where one parent is a carer are not unduly penalised when seeking support for a child entering third level education in terms of SUSI and other State supports. [24778/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The principal support provided by my Department is the student grant scheme, which makes available means-tested financial assistance to students in further and higher education. Under the terms of the student grant scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students on full-time courses who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those which relate to nationality, residency, approved course, previous academic attainment and means.

The special rate of maintenance grant is the highest rate of maintenance grant available and is targeted at those students most in the need. One of the qualifying criteria for the special rate of maintenance grant is that the reckonable income must include one of the eligible long-term social welfare payments prescribed in Schedule 2 of the Student Grant Scheme. I can confirm that Carer’s Allowance and Carer’s Benefit are both eligible social welfare payments for the special rate of maintenance grant. In addition to Carer’s Allowance, the Carer’s Support Grant (where paid to recipients of the Carer’s Allowance and Domiciliary Care Allowance) and the Domiciliary Care Allowance are classified as an “income disregards” and these payments are not included when calculating reckonable income for the purposes of student grant eligibility.

As the Deputy is aware, carers have been named as a priority group in our new National Access Plan. Access to Further and Higher Education continues to be a national priority for the Government and my Department. My Department is committed to the continued roll-out of supports for students and targeted initiatives to support delivery of the vision and targets within the NAP.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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897.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if work has been carried out to develop a more nuanced approach to determining the independence of SUSI applicants (details supplied). [24779/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware, the objective of the statutory based student grant scheme is to provide additional assistance where parental income is below a certain threshold or, in the case of independent mature students, where the level of income of the student and his or her spouse warrants additional assistance by way of a grant.

For student grants purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as students dependent on parents or a legal guardian or as independent mature students.

A candidate's reckonable income for the purposes of the student grant means test is gross income from all sources and the gross income of his/her parents or guardians, where applicable, with certain specified Department of Social Protection Payments being exempt.

A student may be assessed as an independent mature student if they have attained the age of 23 on the 1st of January of the year of first entry to an approved course and is not ordinarily resident with their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) from the previous 1st October. The documentation required can be found here: www.susi.ie/eligibility-criteria/income/applicant-class/independent-students/.

A student under the age of 23 may be assessed without reference to parental income only in exceptional cases, for example orphans, students in foster care, cases where there is evidence of irreconcilable estrangement from parents or legal guardians etc. Applicants are requested to share documentary evidence with SUSI to confirm their situation. The type of documentary evidence required is dependent on the applicant’s individual circumstances and may vary widely from case to case. This approach is taken with a view to giving applicants the flexibility to provide documents that relate to their specific circumstances.