Welfare service reassurance given

THE Department of Social Protection has moved to reassure customers that its decision to relocate Community Welfare Services (CWS) from Edenmore Health Centre to Kilbarrack will not impact on the service it provides.

From Monday, January 13, the CWS will move to the new Intreo Centre in Kilbarrack Shopping Centre, Greendale Road.

A limited service, two mornings a week, had been operating in Edenmore up until December.

Northside TD Tommy Broughan said he was concerned about the CWS closure in Edenmore.

“Although the Department of Social Protection plans to operate a CWS every day (at the new Intreo Centre), this may affect constituents living in Edenmore and Ayrfield some distance away from Kilbarrack,

? he told Northside People.

“This reorganisation is accompanied by cuts to the budget for exceptional needs payments which are paid out by community welfare officers.

“Recent information provided to me by Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, shows that the budget for exceptional needs payments has been reduced by about a half over the past three years.

?

Deputy Broughan said the CWS was a vital support to people requiring financial assistance when they are in very grave need.

“It is crucial that the service can be accessed in an efficient and timely manner,

? he added.

In a statement, the Department of Social Protection said it continuously reviews the staffing needs of all areas of the department.

This is to ensure that efficient and effective services are provided at local level for all those who rely on schemes operated by the department and that the best use is made of all available resources.

“Under the Government’s Pathways to Work Programme, the department is committed to providing opportunities, support and assistance to the approximately 390,000 people on the Live Register,

? a spokeswoman told Northside People.

“It is planned to do this through intensifying the department’s level of engagement with people who are unemployed and, in particular, those who are, or become, long term unemployed.

“In order to deliver on this commitment, it is necessary to redeploy 300 staff throughout the country from other services to activation case officer roles before the end of this year.

?

The spokeswoman said it was in this context that a decision was made to relocate the CWS from Edenmore Health Centre to Kilbarrack Shopping Centre.

“In consolidating community welfare services in the Intreo Centre, there will be an enhanced customer service with clinics available five days per week (Monday to Friday) and extended opening hours from 9am to 5.15pm,

? she stated.

“To facilitate the preparation and reorganisation of files for transfer to Kilbarrack Intreo Centre, it was necessary to suspend these clinics in Edenmore Health Centre for the second half of December.

?

The spokeswoman added that information notices on the planned transfer of services were displayed in the Edenmore office for customers prior to its closure.