Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 4 March 2026
197. Deputy Marie Sherlock asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will report on the engagement of his Department, or the engagement of any agency under the aegis of his Department with the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) accreditation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17336/26]
View answerThe European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) incorporates a form of accreditation which provides a framework for assessing performance in an organisation. There is no record of my Department having engagements in relation to this framework. The Department has accreditation from the National Standards Authority of Ireland and from international frameworks such as ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) and ISSA (International Social Security Association) in a wide range of areas.
The statutory bodies operating under the aegis of my Department are the Citizens Information Board, the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority, the Pensions Authority, the Pensions Council and the Social Welfare Tribunal.
Beginning in 2012 and concluding in 2016, the Citizens Information Board and all companies then funded by the Citizens Information Board completed the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Gold Star Service Excellence Programme. This programme was a customised entry-level quality programme which had a strong focus on customers, customer consultation and customer satisfaction.
The other statutory bodies operating under the aegis of my Department have not had engagements with the EFQM accreditation.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
