Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 October 2018
676. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the regulations in place in respect of applicants for inclusion on the social housing regulations that are victims of domestic violence; the supports available for those applicants; the timescales they can expect in respect of turnaround of applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43225/18]
View answerResponsibility for the development and provision of services to support victims of domestic abuse rests with the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs and the delivery of such services is managed through the Child and Family Agency, Tusla. Housing authorities do not provide or oversee services specifically designed for victims of domestic violence.
Victims of domestic violence who seek emergency accommodation from a housing authority are generally placed in temporary accommodation which the council itself arranges or which is operated by a voluntary service provider. It is not necessary for such persons to go on the general housing waiting list to avail of short-term emergency housing. Such support can be provided where victims of domestic violence meet the homeless definition set out in the Housing Act 1988, which is not prescriptive and in practice will generally include victims of domestic violence.
Where victims of domestic violence require continued State support to meet their housing needs, housing authorities are encouraged to work with all service providers to ensure that a victim’s housing eligibility and need is assessed in a timely manner. This assessment is carried out in accordance with section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, which includes a review of the suitability of the household’s current accommodation having regard to a number of considerations, including whether the accommodation is “an institution, emergency accommodation or a hostel”, as well as “particular household circumstances” or “exceptional medical or compassionate grounds”. This allows a housing authority to consider a victim of domestic violence as having a housing need, and to be placed on a housing list where all other criteria are met.
The allocation of social housing support to qualified households is a matter for individual housing authorities in accordance with their allocation schemes made under section 22 of the 2009 Act. Each housing authority is required to make an allocation scheme specifying, among other things, the manner of, and the order of priority for, the allocation of dwellings to households and classes of households on the waiting list. Households defined as homeless are generally afforded priority in allocation schemes. Allocation schemes may also contain provisions for exceptional or emergency cases, allowing immediate housing outside of normal waiting list priorities, should circumstances warrant it.
In line with commitments in Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness(Action 1.8) and the National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence 2016-2021 (Action 2.30), my Department has issued guidance to all housing authorities in relation to assisting victims of domestic violence with emergency and long-term accommodation needs. The guidance can be accessed using the following link to my Department’s website:
https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/guidance_for_housing_authorities_in_relation_to_assisting_victims_of_domestic_violence.pdf.
The purpose of this guidance is to ensure an effective and consistent housing response for victims of domestic violence. The guidance covers a range of scenarios that may arise for victims of domestic violence in seeking social housing supports, including provisions around the use of the Housing Assistance Payment scheme, or the Rental Accommodation Scheme, where a victim has a joint interest in the family home, or ownership of alternative accommodation, but would otherwise qualify for social housing support.
