Minister pressed to back student support scheme

MORE than 200 students from north Dublin can now attend college thanks to an innovative support scheme for students from disadvantaged…

MORE than 200 students from north Dublin can now attend college thanks to an innovative support scheme for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Higher Education Support Scheme is run by the Northside Partnership and provides advice, information and financial assistance to enable students to enter and continue third level education.

"The scheme helps to keep young people in the education cycle for that much longer," said Mr Padraic White, chairman of the Partnership.

"The one thing we know is that for each year we keep young people in education, the brighter the chances are of getting them a job."

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The Northside Partnership was established in 1991 to tackle unemployment in north Dublin. "Unemployment in the Partnership's catchment area is 40 per cent on average and the participation rate in higher education is about 7 per cent.

Details of the Higher Education Support Scheme were presented to the Minister for Education, Ms Breathnach, yesterday in a report entitled Higher Education: Dream or Reality? Ms Breathnach was in Darndale to promote the urban section of her own initiative, Breaking the Cycle of Education Disadvantage, aimed at 25 disadvantaged schools in the primary sector.

Since 1994, the Northside Partnership's scheme has assisted some 240 students who are attending higher education and whose families depend on social welfare. Money is not given directly to the participants; instead, they receive vouchers for books and monthly bus passes, and the Partnership acts as guarantor with the local Credit Union for "bridging loans" on necessary expenses.

Last year 102 students received assistance under the scheme at a total cost of £60,000. Of those students, 50 per cent attended third level courses while the remainder were involved in Post Leaving Certificate courses. The majority were under 25 and came from Dublin 17 and Dublin 13, which have the highest rates of socio economic disadvantage and early school leaving in the Partnership's area.

"This particular intervention is a low cost one," said Mr White.

"We knew people were dropping out of the education system, because they didn't have enough money, for books or bridging funds.

In a survey by the Partnership of 60 participants in the scheme, the greatest barriers to participation in higher education were financial, including the costs of books, travel, fees and everyday expenses.

"A lot of local people did not even apply to college because they Just assumed that they could not afford it," said Mr Edwin Mernagh, the Partnership's education co ordinator.

"We're talking about kids who are very bright, who know very well how much it costs and what the costs are. What we are trying to do is break that cycle and to show those who come alter that it can be done."

The Partnership wants the Department of Education to take over its scheme and introduce a similar programme throughout the State.

"Our role is to innovate programmes and, if they are worth while, to seek to have them mainstreamed," said Mr White. "We think it's logical for the Department to take it on and extend it to other deprived areas. There isn't a great deal of money involved in it, but that small amount of money is extremely meaningful for students in the area.

The Minister accepted the Partnership's report but maintained her current priority was her own scheme for primary schools.

"All interventions are very welcome," said Ms Breathnach. "Sad to say, there are children who won't even stay in school that long. The intervention schemes will be too late unless we can make sure that all the young people coming through the system will look for help and guidance to avail of the educational opportunities offered to everyone.

THE Minister for Education perched awkwardly on the edge of a tiny seat more suited to small pupils than matronly Ministers.

The infants class of Our Lady Immaculate Junior National School in Darndale, Dublin, looked a little taken aback at this unexpected visitor in the course of their far more important Plasticine-rolling session.

Ms Breathnach gamely massaged Plasticine into something vaguely resembling a snake with water-retention problems and placed it on the table. There was a general air of puzzlement at the Minister's construction skills. A little blond girl poked the snake half heartedly and then stepped back with a worried look.

"I don't think I made that right did I?" asked the Minister. A sea of bemused little faces turned to her as if to ask: "Made what right?"

Still, this was the Minister's day. She had just announced details of Breaking the Cycle of Education Disadvantage, her Department's initiative for primary schools in deprived urban areas.

Under the scheme, Our Lady Immaculate is to receive increased capitation, 11 additional teachers, extra grants for books and equipment and a special grant of up to £4,000 for out of school activities. If Ms Breathnach wanted to play with Plasticine, then no one was going to stop her.

As she posed for photographs, the Minister balanced a tot on her knee and beamed. Then with a final chorus of Itsy Bitsy Spider and a mass rendition of Humpty Dumpty which the Minister conducted like Leonard Bernstein, she was gone. Someone examined the Minister's snake one last time, and then that was gone as well.