Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 27 September 2018
260. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of new housing applicants registered with the various local authorities throughout the country in each of the past three years to date; the number housed by the local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39323/18]
View answerDetails on the number of households qualified for social housing support in each local authority area are provided in the statutory Summary of Social Housing Assessments (SSHA). The most recently conducted SSHA, carried out in June 2018, details the number of households on all local authority waiting lists as at 11 June 2018 (the count date).
The SSHA has been conducted on an annual basis since 2016, links to the relevant reports for 2016, 2017 and 2018 are below. Table 2.9 in these reports provides data on the length of time a household has been deemed qualified for social housing support. It should be noted that the SSHA is a point in time exercise and does not necessarily reflect the dynamic nature of entry to and exit from the list.
2016: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/summary_of_social_housing_assessments_2016.pdf
2017: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/sha_summary_2017.pdf
2018: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/summary_of_social_housing_assessments_2018_-_key_findings.pdf .
While my Department reports quarterly on the number of social housing supports delivered through the range of Government funded schemes, this does not take account of other households that may have been housed by local authorities or Approved Housing Bodies through, for example, routine relettings. The allocation of social housing support is a matter for the relevant local authority in accordance with the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, and associated regulations. Section 22 of the 2009 Act requires all local authorities, as a reserved function, to make an allocation scheme determining the order of priority to be accorded in the allocation of dwellings to households qualified for social housing support and to households approved for a transfer, the allocation of which would, in the opinion of the authority, meet the accommodation needs and requirements of the households. The manner in which the allocation process is managed is a matter for the relevant local authority concerned.
