Benefit Funds Committee 2025

Who are we?

The Benefit Funds Committee (BFC) consists of five elected representatives, one for each of five electoral divisions, together with the General Secretary and the General Treasurer. The purpose of the Committee is to give help and advice to INTO members who fall into financial difficulty and to manage the Benevolent Fund and the Illness and Mortality Fund. The Benefit Funds Committee (BFC) is seen as the Big Friendly Committee.

Members 2025

What do we do?

• Meet members to establish if help can be given or just to give advice
• Meet on a regular basis to discuss cases
• Attend joint CEC/BFC meetings that give authority for the INTO to spend money on legal cases
• Sign off Death Grants and Christmas Grants

How do we work?

The BFC provides advice to members on a range of issues which include sick leave, ill-health retirement and financial difficulties. BFC members may be contacted by phone or email and the contact details are in the INTO Diary as well as listed below.

In certain situations, the BFC may be in a position to support a teacher with financial difficulties. Whilst this support is limited and only on a short-term basis, it can be of vital assistance to members.

Applying for Financial Support
• The member contacts his / her BFC representative for a conversation about their circumstances.
• The member may be sent an Application Form for a Benevolent Grant. Financial details will be required in this form.
• There will be a number of conversations between the BFC representative and the member, to fully ascertain the circumstances of the member.
• The BFC representative brings the case to the next BFC meeting for consideration, after which a consensus is reached.
• The member will then be contacted and told if the decision is favourable or unfavourable.
• There will be contact with Head Office to implement the outcome agreed at the meeting.

The BFC member is contacted by member. The BFC member arranges to meet the member to discuss the issue and complete paperwork The case is then discussed confidentiality within the committee. A consensus is reached after discussion. The outcome may be favourable or unfavourable. On occasions the Rep is asked to go and seek more information so that the Committee can have a clear view of the difficulty and the commitment that the Committee may be taking on.

The BFC Rep will usually then contacts the member to pass on the decision. A letter often follows from Head Office to the member.

Death Grant

The BFC oversees death grants for INTO members and their spouses. A €5,000 grant is available to help with funeral costs in the event of a member’s death. A €3,000 grant is payable in the event of the death of a member’s spouse or civil partner. Since Congress 2024, a grant of €3000 on the death of a member’s child is now payable. To claim the grant, a form is requested from and returned to the BFC Representative for authorisation.

Attendance at meetings

BFC Representatives attend District meetings but only attend Branch meetings at the request of the Branch. The Division I Rep is also a member of Northern Committee.

What financial help can be given?

• · A small emergency grant (if specific conditions are met)
• · A one-off grant to help resolve a situation
• · Occasionally time limited grants may be given
• · A grant that will be paid back e.g. when a lump sum comes in through salary protection (Ill health)

Is there a typical member who needs help?

• Each case is individual but broadly, the BFC has extensive experience in supporting members facing financial challenges posed by crisis e.g. ill-health and family crises.
• Specific Examples
• A teacher who had to leave home because the home couldn’t be heated. A grant for oil was given.
• A teacher who had retired due to mental health issues and was officially homeless was given a small grant to cover something that needed to be paid for.
• A grant was given to a member who was about to lose their house due to a marital breakup. The member’s partner was refusing to co-operate to resolve financial difficulties.
• A recurring grant was given to a teacher for a limited period while the teacher got their finances organised after a breakup, with child care being the main issue.
• A terminally ill member was provided with a grant to make up a shortfall in their salary for a couple of months.

Specific Examples

• A teacher who had to leave home because the home couldn’t be heated. A grant for oil was given.
• A teacher who had retired due to mental health issues and was officially homeless was given a small grant to cover something that needed paid for.
• A grant was given to a member who was about to lose the house due to a marital breakup. The member’s partner was refusing to co-operate to resolve financial difficulties.
• A recurring grant was given to a teacher for a limited period while the teacher got their finances sorted after a breakup with child care the main issue.
• A terminally ill member was given a grant to make up shortfall in salary for a couple of months.

How can INTO members help?

• Ask the Branch Secretary to action a death grant if they hear a member has died.
• Get members in need to give me a ring to discuss the issue. If they don’t ask they won’t get and the worst thing that can happen is that the BFC will say no. The result won’t be passed onto the NC Rep by the BFC though the member may share it with the NC Rep.

How to contact the BFC?

If you have a query or need additional information, you can send an email to benefitfundscommittee@into.ie. Alternatively, you can contact your local BFC representative, details can be found in your INTO member diary.