Joe Neville (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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2136. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of students from Kildare north enrolled in apprenticeships for the 2025-2026 academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59123/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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Apprentices are employees and are registered by their employers in the Education and Training Board (ETB) region in which the employer is located, not on a county basis. This means the apprentice may not necessarily reside in or be originally from that region. In the case of employers based in north Kildare, the apprentices they employ are registered to Kildare Wicklow ETB (KWETB).

In addition, apprentices are registered by their employer throughout the year, normally within two weeks of taking up the apprenticeship with their employer. As such, apprenticeships do not follow the academic year pattern.

The total number of apprentices registered with employers - both in craft and consortia - located in the KWETB region to the end of September 2025 is 2,113. These apprentices are at various stages of on-the-job and off-the-job training, depending on the programme they are participating in.

Apprentices registered at KWETB may conduct their ‘off-the-job training’ at national centres outside of this region based on their apprenticeship, availability of courses and position on the national waiting list, where applicable.