Social Impact Assessment

Social Impact Assessment (SIA) is an analytical framework that is designed to examine the demographic profile of public services users, and how they are impacted by budgetary policy decisions. The framework complements existing budgetary impact assessment exercises conducted by the Departments of Public Expenditure and Reform (including Equality Budgeting), Finance, Employment Affairs and Social Protection and externally by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).

SIA is underpinned by a framework paper published by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in 2016. This paper seeks to develop a framework for future SIAs which can be used as a reference point when examining the impact of budgetary policy decisions.

As such, the framework not only takes account of the impacts of existing government expenditure but also provides scope for incorporating the impact of changes to expenditure on public services over time. In so doing, the SIA framework may increasingly make it possible to compare the distributional impact of changes to various types of public expenditure and the implications for outcomes across a broad range of demographics indicators.

In addition to the framework paper, 13 SIA papers have been produced to date

• Social Impact Assessment Series: Student Grant Scheme (SUSI Grants) *
• A Social Impact Assessment of the SEAI's Energy Poverty Schemes*
• Equality Budgeting – Relevant Findings from Ex Post Evaluation*
• Public Service Obligation (PSO) Funding for Public Transport*
• Domiciliary Care Allowance*
• Social Impact Assessment - Intellectual Disabilities*
• Social Impact Assessment (SIA): Acute Mental Health Services*
• Social Impact Assessment (SIA): Nursing Home Support Scheme*
• Female Labour Force Participation
• Targeted Childcare Programmes
• Social Housing Supports
• National Minimum Wage
• Assessment of Living Standards in Recovery Period
• published as part of the Spending Review Papers