Mayo families encouraged to apply for Back to School Allowance
MINISTER of State Alan Dillon is encouraging eligible Mayo families to apply for the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance, applications for which open today (Thursday).
He welcomed the news that his colleague Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, had opened applications for the once-off payment to eligible families to assist them with the cost of sending their children back to school.
Said Minister Dillon: “The rate of payment for 2024 is €160 for children aged four to 11 and €285 for children aged 12 years and over in second level education.
“Some €65.2 million has been secured for the scheme this year, with more than 118,000 families set to receive the allowance automatically on the week beginning July 8.
“This is a very important scheme that recognises the financial pressures many families face in relation to back-to-school costs.”
The department have confirmed that more than 118,000 families nationally – in respect of 207,000 children - will receive the support automatically next month and are currently being notified.
The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance provides a once-off payment to eligible families towards the cost of school clothing and footwear.
The majority of payments will be paid automatically with no application form required.
The Department of Social Protection is currently processing these payments and customers will receive confirmation informing them of their automatic entitlement, on their MyWelfare account or by post. This will result in approximately €44.2 million paid to these families during the week beginning July 8.
Families who do not receive notification from the department of an automated payment should make an application online on www.MyWelfare.ie even if they received a payment last year.
The department is providing dedicated phone lines (071-9193318 and 0818-11-11-13) to answer enquiries during usual business hours, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
People also have the choice of emailing the department at bscfa@welfare.ie if they have an enquiry regarding their application or entitlement.
The closing date to apply for this year’s Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is September 30.