Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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175. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of children benefiting from the one-parent family payment scheme as of 30 June 2015; the associated cost to her Department; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28301/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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As of 30^thJune 2015, there were 105,944 children benefitting from the one-parent family payment with a total of 60,966 recipients.

The associated cost of the one-parent family payment scheme to my Department in 2015 is estimated to be €607 million.

The purpose of the one-parent family payment (OFP) age reforms that were introduced in the Social Welfare and Pensions Act, 2012, is to reduce long-term social welfare dependency. The reforms aim to improve lone parents’ access to the Department’s range of education, training, and employment support programmes, in order to assist them in securing employment and financial independence.

The final phase of the OFP age change reforms took place on 2 July, 2015 when approximately 29,400 OFP recipients were successfully transitioned to alternative income support payments – including jobseeker’s allowance, the jobseeker’s transitional payment and family income supplement (FIS), where they may also qualify for the new back to work family dividend.

Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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176. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of one-parent families with one, two, three, four or more than four children that are in receipt of a one-parent family payment as of 30 June 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28302/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The information requested by the Deputy is detailed in a tabular statement.

Recipients of One Parent Family Payment by Number of Children at end of June 2015.