The back to school clothing and footwear allowance provides assistance towards the cost of school clothing and footwear for children attending primary and post-primary schools. The health boards administer the scheme on behalf of my Department. Neither I nor my Department has any function in deciding cases.
A person may qualify for payment of this allowance in the following ways: if he or she is in receipt of a social welfare or health board payment; is participating in an approved employment scheme or attending a recognised education and training course; and where a child dependent allowance is being paid in respect of the child and the person has household income at or below a specified maximum level.
Under the scheme allowances of €80 are payable in respect of qualified children aged from two to 11 years and allowances of €150 are payable in respect of qualified children from 12 to 22 years.
The community employment scheme is an approved employment scheme for the purposes of the back to school clothing and footwear allowance. Accordingly, participants must have the same entitlement to the allowance as those participating in other schemes, subject to the same weekly income limit.
A lone parent on a community employment scheme may qualify under the standard means test that applies to all lone parents. Alternatively, a lone parent may qualify under the special arrangements for retention of secondary benefits which are available to lone parents and other participants in employment schemes, including community employment. These special arrangements are subject to a weekly income limit of €317.43 which applies equally to lone parents and all other participants in community employment and other employment schemes.
Lone parents who do not qualify to retain the back to school clothing and footwear allowance on means grounds have incomes over the limit of €317.43 per week. This income limit is necessary to ensure that the available funds are targeted on those with the lowest incomes. Any changes to the current arrangements would have to be considered in a budgetary context.