A welcome announcement of 250 funded professional accountancy places, open to all Irish businesses, comes as the new coalition government promises a "jobs-led" recovery from the economic-shock of the coronavirus pandemic.

The training programmes being delivered by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and Professional Accountancy Training (PAT) support the government’s National Economic Plan, which will have a key focus on retraining and upskilling as a catalyst for economic recovery. The funding is being delivered through the Springboard+ and the Human Capital Initiative and will support employers who want to enrol single or multiple trainees.

The announcement is also in line with the commitment to grow the financial services sector, as outlined in the ‘Ireland for Finance’ programme, with the ambitious target of 50,000 people in direct employment in International Financial Services (IFS) by 2025.

The new government funded schemes are designed to support the upskilling of trainees in accountancy and financial services across a range of business sectors and organisations as they seek to develop the expertise of staff to achieve economic recovery. ACCA and PAT have enabled employers to look to the future by offering a funded training module delivered through flexible training platforms including online, helping employers to develop an enhanced response to the skills needs within the transformed economic and labour market landscape arising from the pandemic.

Commenting on the announcement Caitriona Allis Head of ACCA Ireland, said, “We have seen recently how businesses have needed to review and adapt their team’s skillset to support economic recovery, with new market environments evolving post Covid-19. Key to this has been the ability to make strategic financial decisions and to deliver planned financial management skillsets that will play a crucial role in supporting economic recovery in the medium to longer term. This programme represents a significant opportunity for companies to develop that skillset, providing their employees with the insights and expertise which will support the future approach and direction of their business.”

Gerry Fahy, Managing Director of PAT is delighted by the announcement, “As we rely more heavily than ever on financial services professionals with their knowledge and expertise to navigate our economic future, it was incumbent that we provided funding for places on these courses. These training places will be vital in ensuring that Ireland’s long-term economic prosperity is supported by highly skilled and quality professionals.”

All courses under Springboard+ and HCI Pillar were selected by an independent panel with experts from industry and education following a competitive tendering process. Courses are in areas that have been deemed by Government as being of critical importance. The application window is currently open and with high demand interested parties are encouraged to avail of this opportunity now.