AQW 8917/22-27

Mr Danny Donnelly
Alliance Party
East Antrim

Tabled Date: 14/03/2024
Answered On Date: 22/03/2024
Priority Written: Yes

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health, in relation to the recommendations of the Speech and Language Therapy Workforce Review 2019 – 2029, whether he will commit to ensuring 40 commissioned training places for Speech and Language Therapists will be offered for the September 2024 academic year intake at Ulster University.

Answer:

The commissioning of pre-registration education and training by my Department is reviewed annually, taking into account a range of factors including staffing and vacancy levels, recommendations from workforce reviews, priorities, and affordability. I remain committed to implementing the recommendations of the Speech and Language Therapy Workforce Review 2019 – 2029 which will require increasing the number of undergraduate training places commissioned each year by 12 to reach an annual total of 40.

A budget for Northern Ireland Departments has not yet been set for 2024/25 and accordingly I am unable to make any commitment to expand commissioned places at this time. I will continue to make the case for this essential investment in our future workforce. However, I expect that the 2024/25 budget will be extremely challenging.