EAST Galway TD Sean Canney this week welcomed an increase in the level of the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance.
‘This allowance is crucial in helping many families meet the cost of back to school provisions and the decision to increase the help available by 25% is most welcome.
‘The allowance for children aged 4-11 is increasing from €100 to €125, while the allowance for children aged 12 and over is increasing from €200 to €250. Income limits have also been adjusted to reflect changes to social welfare payments.
‘At present over 150,000 families receive the allowance, so the benefit of the increase will be widely felt. The increase will go some way towards alleviating the very high cost of uniforms, clothes, footwear, school books and other school provisions for families throughout Galway.
‘These are families that need assistance in coming months and the decision to increase the level of the grant by 25% shows that this government is committed to addressing the difficulties face by low income families.
‘The allowance is paid automatically to many families and these families will be notified in coming weeks. The payment will then be made on the week ending July 14th. It is important that families who believe that they are entitled to the allowance but do not receive it make an application in advance of the deadline of September 30th. Application forms are available at the Department of Social Protection website or from my constituency office.’