The National Intreo Contact Centre (NICC) has been set up to respond efficiently and effectively to telephone calls made to Intreo Offices. Department of Social Protection staff are there to assist customers and seek to bring about a solution to their query. Staff on the NICC will normally resolve queries at the first point of contact. When a client rings the local Intreo office number with a query, including any request to engage with the Community Welfare Service, their call will be answered by NICC staff who will resolve the query if possible, or if necessary escalate onward to the relevant Intreo Centre, including to the Community Welfare Service (CWS). All Intreo staff are committed to prioritising these follow-up requests and will make contact with the client. Such escalations from the NICC are dealt with in real time, and in instances where CWS queries are deemed to be emergencies these calls are prioritised. The provision of an in-person service to clients and access to Intreo Centres continues and supports for vulnerable clients and home visits where required are all available locally and continue to be an important part of service delivery.
While Intreo Centre opening hours were reduced during the pandemic, business hours are reverting to pre-Covid hours and by end of February will be 9.15am to 5pm Monday to Wednesday, 10.30am to 5pm on Thursdays (to allow for staff training) and 9.15 to 4.30pm on Fridays. An appointment is not necessary for the majority of the Department’s customers as Intreo Centres operate a walk-in service all day. During the reduced opening hours that were in operation during the pandemic, a walk-in service was available in the mornings and customers were facilitated with appointments in the afternoons as required but data on the number of these appointments is not available.
