100,000 learning in community

It is estimated that up to 100,000 women take part in community education. Indeed, community education is now the fastest-growing area in the education sector. Despite this, Government funding remains minimal - at just under £1.4 million per annum, according to Berni Brady, director of AONTAS, the National Association of Adult Education. A new report, At the Forefront - the Role of Women's Community Education in Combating Poverty and Disadvantage in the Republic of Ireland, highlights the role community education has played in improving the lives of women and their families in disadvantaged areas. Case studies show that women in marginalised communities have grown in self-confidence, continued in education (some to degree level), become active in their communities and gained jobs. Money is a major issue for community groups delivering this type of education. Women's community-based education, says the report, needs core funding to allow for continuity and security in the provision and delivery of services. The departments of Health and Children, Education and Science, Social, Community and Family Affairs and Justice, Equality and Law Reform must create a structure to co-ordinate funding, it says. The lack of childcare provision and transport remain major barriers to women availing of community education. These issues need to be addressed as a matter of urgency, says the report, which was researched by UCD's Women's Education Research and Resource Centre. Importantly, the report also recommends that the National Qualifications Authority and the National Learning Council cooperate to establish a system for the accreditation of women's community-based education.