WELFARE claims for additional needs payments to help meet exceptional and urgent expenses almost trebled in Cork last year, while claims for assistance to buy clothing showed a nine-fold increase.

Additional needs payments to social protection recipients in Co Cork jumped from 4,164 in 2021 to 11,733 in 2022, according to figures released by the Department of Social Protection in reply to a parliamentary question from Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould.

The data shows requests for assistance to purchase clothing jumped from 516 claims in Co Cork in 2021 to 4,696 claims in 2022.

The department allowed 3,191 applications under the heading “general” in the county last year, compared to 1,187 claims allowed under the same description in 2021. Under the heading “housing”, the department allowed 2,659 claims in Co Cork in 2022, against 2,001 claims allowed in 2021.

Applications for the payments, entitled “additional needs payments” and until last year, classified as “exceptional and urgent needs payments”, are assessed on an individual basis by local community welfare officers.

In addition to the 11,733 claims allowed in 2022, the department rejected a total of 2,040 claims.

In a written response to Mr Gould’s parliamentary question, Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys said statistics for the number of claims rejected in 2021 were not available.

Mr Gould described the rise in applications for support as “phenomenal”, telling The Echo the figures offered a stark rebuttal to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar this week disputing research for children’s charity Barnados which showed that one in 10 parents had used food banks in the last year.

“This is proof, if proof were needed, of just how badly people are struggling: They’re struggling to get clothing for their children, they’re struggling to put food on the table, and they’re struggling to heat their homes,” said the Sinn Féin TD.

“Families are to the pin of their collar to just do the bare necessities, and these figures paint a picture that shows that the people who are struggling are really struggling.”

Mr Gould said figures relating to requests for assistance with the purchase of clothing were particularly shocking — “and shocking isn’t a strong enough word” — and said the need for additional clothing was likely to be connected to fuel poverty.

“Children grow, and trying to keep up with shoes and runners and uniforms is an expensive job, and people are under pressure, and then if people are trying to manage their heating expenses at home, it’s a lot easier to put a warm jumper on a person than turn on the heating. And it is shocking that in 2023 we have people who cannot afford to clothe their kids or heat their homes.”

Mr Gould said charities such as Cork Penny Dinners were feeding more people than ever before, and that it was morally wrong in a wealthy country that families were struggling and children were being fed from food banks.

“There was a time when a family could survive on one income, and now a lot of families can’t survive on two,” said Mr Gould.

He said Sinn Féin is calling for a social protection spring bonus similar to the Christmas bonus, and wants to see supports for renters and for those paying mortgages, and was calling for a cap on electricity prices to 2021 levels until the end of May, as well as an extension of the excise reductions on petrol and diesel until the end of May.

• The National Community Welfare Contact Centre can be contacted on 0818 607080.