To ask the Minister for Communities to detail any support in place through Universal Credit to encourage mature students with caring responsibilities to pursue higher education and, ultimately, move into employment.

Universal Credit staff are trained to provide tailored support to all claimants including mature students with caring responsibilities. They will answer their queries, give them information about additional training and/or education to support them into the workplace, and will signpost them to seek advice from Advice NI. Alongside this they will tell them about the additional financial support available for the Department’s Adviser Discretion Fund. This is a non-repaybale grant to help claimant’s complete additional training to support them into employment/self-employment for such things as clothing, work equipment, childcare costs and training costs if they are eligible for support.