To ask the Minister for Employment and Learning, pursuant to AQW 41202/11-15, to detail the support, other than financial provision, which is available.

All of the further and higher education institutions in Northern Ireland offer a wide range of support services to all students, some of whom will have caring responsibilities.

Further Education colleges provide a wide range of non-financial support for students with caring responsibilities in relation to entering, sustaining and achieving in FE. Student support teams within FE colleges provide pastoral care to all students and work closely with those students who have declared themselves as being carers to ensure they are not disadvantaged. Such support can include individually tailored timetables to facilitate carer duties; the use of technology to support students to access course information remotely and to complete assignments online; and time off at short or without any notice for medical/hospital appointments.

Northern Ireland’s higher education providers also provide a range of support services to both full-time and part-time students. The nature of the support will vary according to the needs of the individual student but can include the support of a tutor / mentor and flexibility with course delivery and assessment, including extensions if necessary, for coursework submissions. In addition, it is a basic function of student support services that staff are alert to the needs of students, including carers, and that they are sign-posted appropriately so that help and advice can be accessed in a timely manner.

Access to Success, my Department’s regional strategy for widening participation in higher education, has identified adult learners as a group which faces barriers to their participation in higher education. In some cases this will include adult learners who find it difficult to engage in education because of caring responsibilities. Access to Success aims to give groups such as adult learners the encouragement and support they need to achieve the necessary qualifications to apply to, and to benefit from, the higher education that is right for them, irrespective of their personal or social background.