Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 October 2021
53. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to the low morale that exists amongst community welfare officers due to the increased workload that Covid-19 has placed on them; her plans to increase the number of community welfare officers in counties Cavan and Monaghan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48293/21]
View answerThe Community Welfare Service in my department delivers the supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is the safety net within the overall social welfare system. This scheme provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents.
The Divisional management team is responsible for the delivery of the service at local level, including the management of workloads.
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the delivery of the service, however, every effort has been made to ensure that customers can readily access the service and that payments are processed as quickly as possible. I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the manner in which the staff in my department have risen to these challenges.
In line with public health advice over the last eighteen months my department has sought to reduce face-to-face contact and, where possible, access for customers to the community welfare service is being provided online, by post and over the telephone. However, Intreo offices are open five days per week and any person who needs to access the Community Welfare Service can attend at an Intreo office every morning or make an appointment for an afternoon meeting.
There are 3 Community Welfare Officers in Monaghan and 3 in Cavan. Both teams have clerical support. Unfortunately, 2 of the officers in Cavan are on sick leave, but arrangements were immediately put in place to ensure continuity of this critical service. 2 Community Welfare Officers are reassigned from other areas to provide cover on a fulltime basis. All applications have been actioned and there is no backlog.
I am informed that current workloads are manageable and there are no plans to increase the number of officers. I wish to assure the Deputy that operational arrangements are kept under constant review to ensure that the Community Welfare Service continues to provide a timely response to support those in need of assistance. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
