Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 527: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason a person (details supplied) in County Kildare has had their rent subsidy reduced; if it is because the applicant is in receipt of a payment from their employment with FÁS; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26714/08]

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 539: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if it is the average yearly payment of persons (details supplied) in County Kildare that is taken into account when assessing the back to school clothing and footwear allowance 2008; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26720/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 527 and 539 together.

Rent supplement is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE) as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.

The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source.

Rent supplement is calculated to ensure that a person, after the payment of rent, has an income equal to the basic rate of supplementary welfare allowance, appropriate to his/her family circumstances, less a specified minimum contribution, currently €13, which recipients are required to pay from their own resources. Many people pay more than €13 because recipients are required to contribute any additional assessable means that they have, over and above the appropriate rate of supplementary welfare allowance, towards their accommodation costs. Where a person has additional income in excess of the standard weekly rate of supplementary welfare allowance, the first €75 of such additional income together with 25% of any additional income above €75 is disregarded for means assessment purposes.

The HSE has advised that the person concerned was initially in receipt of the maximum amount of rent supplement while in receipt of One-Parent Family payment. When she took up a FÁS course, rent allowance was reduced, to take account of additional earnings. Her entitlement to rent supplement was reviewed following a reduction in her rate of One-Parent Family payment and her rent supplement has now been increased to €367.69 a month.

The back to school clothing and footwear allowance scheme (BSCFA) is also administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the HSE. Applications for the allowance may be made between the beginning of June and the end of September each year. A person may qualify for payment of the allowance if s/he is in receipt of a social welfare or HSE payment, is participating in an approved employment scheme or attending a recognised education or training course and has household income at or below certain specified levels at the time of the application for the allowance.

Entitlement to the allowance is based on the person's normal weekly income. In the case in question the Executive has advised that the person concerned does not qualify for the back to school clothing and footwear allowance as her household income is well in excess of the specified limit for her family size.