Quinn relaxes six-month jobless rule for Springboard applicants

The requirement to be out of work for six months or more to access a place on the re-training Springboard programme will be relaxed for the final phase of recruitment.

Minister for Education and Skills Ruairi Quinn said the six-month unemployment requirement will be waived for the final course because of the huge demand for the programme.

People who have lost their jobs within the last six months, and people who have been unemployed for much longer but have managed to find temporary work for a few weeks or months at a time, will now be facilitated.

Some 6,000 free higher education and training places are being provided through Springboard as part of the Government’s Job Initiative, which was launched last May.