AQW 34362/22-27

Ms Connie Egan
Alliance Party
North Down

Tabled Date: 24/10/2025
Answered On Date: 12/01/2026
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities (i) for an update on his Department's Work Psychology Service’s relationship with Lifeline; and (ii) to detail the number of referrals made to Lifeline through the service, in each year since 2020.

Answer:

My Department’s Work Psychology Service has maintained a working relationship with Lifeline for some years for the purpose of enhancing awareness of suicide and self harm for our customer facing staff and to provide direct access to Lifeline’s crisis intervention service for our claimants.

Whilst the Work Psychology Service does not make direct referrals, the Department for Communities has had a process in place to refer vulnerable customers at risk of suicide or self harm to Lifeline since 15 April 2024.

Referrals by year are as follows:

5 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, 14

1 April 2025 to date, 7.