€47.5 Million in Payments to Help with School Costs
Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, announced that over 126,000 families will receive the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance starting this week. The Department of Social Protection will distribute over €47.5 million to support eligible families with the cost of school uniforms and footwear.
Families will receive €160 for each child aged 4-11 and €285 for each child aged 12 and over. Payments will benefit over 223,000 children. Notifications of the payments will be sent by post or through the MyWelfare account.
Minister Humphreys emphasized the importance of this support in helping parents manage back-to-school expenses. The allowance is still open for applications until September 30th. Families are encouraged to check their eligibility and apply if they haven’t already.
This initiative is part of broader efforts to support families, including the Hot School Meals Programme, the Free School Books Scheme, double Child Benefit Payment, and increases to the Working Family Payment threshold.
County Breakdown of Recipients:
- Carlow: 2,187 families, 3,748 children
- Cavan: 2,174 families, 3,991 children
- Clare: 2,953 families, 5,255 children
- Cork: 11,842 families, 20,562 children
- Donegal: 5,897 families, 10,615 children
- Dublin: 32,585 families, 56,339 children
- Galway: 5,647 families, 10,278 children
- Kerry: 4,387 families, 7,245 children
- Kildare: 5,126 families, 9,010 children
- Kilkenny: 1,973 families, 3,463 children
- Laois: 2,419 families, 4,446 children
- Leitrim: 1,043 families, 1,871 children
- Limerick: 5,566 families, 9,918 children
- Longford: 1,653 families, 3,139 children
- Louth: 5,040 families, 8,949 children
- Mayo: 3,745 families, 6,868 children
- Meath: 4,553 families, 8,036 children
- Monaghan: 1,725 families, 3,208 children
- Offaly: 2,364 families, 4,279 children
- Roscommon: 1,616 families, 3,119 children
- Sligo: 1,849 families, 3,316 children
- Tipperary: 4,717 families, 8,449 children
- Waterford: 3,989 families, 6,893 children
- Westmeath: 2,766 families, 4,884 children
- Wexford: 5,200 families, 9,065 children
- Wicklow: 3,578 families, 6,104 children
For more information and to apply, visit www.gov.ie/bscfa. The application deadline is September 30th, 2024. Enquiries can be made by phone or email during business hours.