§ Mr. LuffTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which publicly funded training initiatives are open to(a) EU nationals of other member states resident in the UK and (b) asylum seekers. [129778]
§ Mr. Ivan LewisEuropean Union (EU) nationals and their dependants resident in the UK or elsewhere in the European Economic Area for the previous three years are eligible for further education (FE). EU nationals are also eligible for work based learning for young people, which consists of the Entry to Employment and Modern Apprenticeship initiatives, and are eligible for local authority organised adult education.
Asylum seekers and their dependants who are supported by the National Asylum Support Service or similar, are eligible for FE. Unaccompanied asylum seekers aged 16–18 in the care of social services are also eligible for FE. Asylum seekers are not eligible for Modern Apprenticeships but may be accepted on to 689W Entry to Employment courses. Eligibility for access to local authority organised adult education is generally in line with that for FE but local authorities have discretion to set their own criteria and might make provision available to additional categories of asylum seekers.