HIGHER EDUCATION AUTHORITY WELCOMES ONCE-OFF COVID-19 CONTINGENCY FUND FOR ACCESS AND SUPPORT SERVICES 

Posted: 16 October, 2020

The Higher Education Authority has welcomed the allocation of €1.9m among Higher Education Institutions for the purpose of enabling access services to deliver local COVID responses that support vulnerable students. 

The funding will support institutions to continue their PATH (Programme for Access to Higher Education) projects and to support the National Plan for Equity of Access 2015-2021 objectives of attracting and retaining students from National Access Plan target groups during the COVID-19 period.  

It will also provide additional resources to access and support services within higher education institutions (HEIs) to help them implement appropriate supports to meet the needs of vulnerable students who have been most impacted by COVID. 

This includes entrants from socio-economic groups that have low participation in higher education, first time mature student entrants, students with disabilities, part-time/flexible learners, further education award holders and members of the Irish Traveller and Roma communities. 

This new €1.9m funding is a once-off contingency fund to be used in the 2020/2021 academic year and is ringfenced for COVID-19 related responses to vulnerable groups.