Social transfers and deprivation in Ireland: A study of cash and non-cash payments tied to housing, childcare, and primary health care services

Joe O’Brien T.D., Minister of State with responsibility for social inclusion policy will launch a report titled 'Social transfers and deprivation in Ireland: A study of cash and non-cash payments tied to housing, childcare, and primary health care services.'

This report was commissioned from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) by the Department of Social Protection, as part of a research programme co-ordinated by the Social Inclusion Division to monitor poverty trends. This report is jointly published by the Department and the ESRI as part of the Social Inclusion Report Series.

This report explores the association between three types of social transfer (tied to childcare, housing, and medical services) and deprivation (which is understood as the inability to afford basic goods and services) for social risk and social class groups. The analysis draws on data from SILC (Statistics on Income and Living Conditions, 2017), PCRS (Primary Care Reimbursement Service) and ESRI’s SWITCH model (Simulating Welfare and Income Tax Changes). First, we consider housing supplements (rent supplement and mortgage interest supplement) and housing benefits (housing benefits package) recorded in the SILC dataset. Second, we assign a monetary value to medical and GP cards, which do not take the form of a cash transfer but provide a crucial resource to families. Third, we consider childcare supports and childcare schemes. These supports are especially important for lone parents and parents with a disability, although they are not a cash transfer they represent a crucial resource. Having outlined these schemes, we then simulate their association with deprivation by considering household income with and without the value of the transfers. We further carry out this step for social risk and social class groups.

A video of the webinar can be viewed below. For more ESRI webinars, visit our Youtube channel.