Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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198. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will reintroduce the practice of community welfare officers visiting towns and communities in counties Cavan and Monaghan one day per week. [6402/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The delivery of crucial and locally based community welfare services to meet the challenges and the needs of citizens in Cavan and Monaghan, and across the country is a priority for me and for my Department.

The CWS provides a flexible service to meet the different needs of customers, who may find themselves in a financially difficult or vulnerable situation. It is important that this service is easily accessible and responsive to customer needs.

While local face-to-face engagement with clients continues to be a cornerstone of the community welfare service, it is important to mention that a person does not need to meet with a Community Welfare Officer (CWO) to make an application and any person who needs to access the CWS can call the National CWS freephone number at 0818 60 70 80, to make an appointment or to speak directly to a CWO.A CWO is available to meet with citizens during business hours Monday to Friday in the Cavan Intreo Centre and in the following locations in Monaghan:

If a client does not live within the vicinity of the above locations, an appointment can be arranged within a short time of the person requiring such a meeting, at a mutually agreed location, including at their home.

Alternatively, a person can speak with a CWO over the phone if they do not wish to travel to meet with a CWO in person. CWOs working on the phoneline are dealing with over 5,000 callers per week. This service is proving very popular with customers in rural areas, including areas in Cavan and Monaghan, who can have their needs met without the requirement to travel.

My Department is working on the provision of an online Additional Needs Payment (ANP) application process via the www.MyWelfare.iesystem. The provision of the ANP online application will ensure that those who wish to access this scheme online including providing supporting documentation will be able to do so. It is expected this option will be available to clients by the end of Q1.

Where it is clear that a person has an urgent or immediate need, every effort is made to ensure that the claim is processed on the same day. CWOs are very experienced and can generally assess when a case is so urgent that it requires an immediate response. Approximately 10% of Community Welfare payments to customers across the country are made on this basis, which shows just how responsive the service is to an urgent customer need.

A person can apply for a Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) payment by completing a SWA1 form, which is widely available. It can be downloaded at www.gov.ie.It is available in all Intreo Centres and Branch Offices. It can be requested by emailing cwsforms@welfare.ieor by calling 0818 60 70 80. Customers can also request a SWA1 form by using the Request Application Form page available on www.gov.ie.

A completed application form together with any supporting documentation can be returned directly to the Department where the claim will be processed quickly, without the need to travel.

I trust this clarifies the matter.