Criteria for participation in community employment schemes are a matter for the Department of Enterprise and Employment, in conjunction with FÁS. People in receipt of contributory based social welfare schemes such as deserted wife's benefit are not generally considered eligible for community employment under the criteria laid down by that Department. However, as lone parent's allowance is a recognised payment for receipt of community employment, my Department facilitates people wishing to avail of community employment by transferring them to that allowance where appropriate.
People who transfer from deserted wife's benefit to lone parent's allowance in order to avail of community employment will be allowed to revert to their previous payment when their community employment scheme finishes, provided they still satisfy the conditions for receipt of deserted wife's benefit and they should check that this will be the case before switching.
Participating in a community employment scheme is not a disqualification for deserted wife's benefit and a person's deserted wife's benefit would not be affected in these circumstances. Similarly, an extension of the duration of a community employment scheme for an existing recipient of deserted wife's benefit would not affect their entitlement.
I am arranging for my Department to contact the Department of Enterprise and Employment to review the eligibility criteria for community employment in the case of people in receipt of payments, such as deserted wife's benefit. The position of such women in relation to community employment will be kept in mind also in framing the proposed new lone parent's scheme announced in this year's budget.