Written answers
Wednesday, 5 October 2022
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
Social Welfare Payments
Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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234. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the average processing time for applications for additional needs payments by month from June 2022 to date, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48863/22]
Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The number of applications for Additional Needs Payments increased significantly following two major advertising and communications campaign by my Department to promote the scheme this year. The trend in the number of applications paid from January – August 2022 and during the same period in 2021 is as follows:
Additional Needs Payments (excl. supplements) paid from Jan - Aug 2021 and in the same period in 2022
| Month/Year | Total | Month/Year | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan-21 | 3,974 | Jan-22 | 3,596 |
| Feb-21 | 4,606 | Feb-22 | 4,249 |
| Mar-21 | 5,467 | Mar-22 | 5,328 |
| Apr-21 | 4,712 | Apr-22 | 5,752 |
| May-21 | 4,703 | May-22 | 8,921 |
| Jun-21 | 4,536 | Jun-22 | 9,139 |
| Jul-21 | 4,451 | Jul-22 | 8,444 |
| Aug-21 | 4,277 | Aug-22 | 11,086 |
| Total | 36,726 | Total | 56,515 |
The Community Welfare Service is committed to providing a quality service to all citizens, ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible.
Based on the available data, it is estimated that 63% of applications for Additional Needs Payments are finalised within 4 weeks. Where an application is not finalised within this timeframe, this is generally due to additional information or documentation being requested from the person to support their application. Where it is evident that a person is experiencing particular hardship and their application is complete and accompanied by the required documentation, their application is prioritised.
I want to acknowledge the huge efforts of our network of Community Welfare Officers throughout the country to support people at this time. My Department continues to work to improve the service to citizens and every effort is being made to minimise decision wait times.
I trust this clarifies the matter.
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