Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 July 2020
318. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social homes in counties Longford and Westmeath that have had works completed under the energy efficiency and retrofitting programme; the average cost per unit for a two, three and four bed and OPD, respectively; the remaining number of homes; and the estimated costs. [14484/20]
View answerMy Department has provided funding for an Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for local authority homes since 2013. The Programme has two phases, phase one, which covers the bulk of the work undertaken to date, focused on delivering immediate improvements such as cavity wall and attic insulation. Phase two targets higher cost measures, such as fabric upgrades, window and door upgrades and the installation of photovoltaic panels and heat pumps.
To date under the programme, some €151m has been spent nationally, with over 72,000 social housing homes upgraded. In Longford, 890 homes have been upgraded to end-2019, while 2,113 homes were upgraded in Westmeath, with funding support of over €5.6m from my Department, combined.
The exchequer funding available to the local authorities under the social housing retrofit programme for 2020 is set at up to a maximum of €30,100 for a mid-terrace house or apartment and €34,600 for a property that is end-terrace, detached, semi-detached or a bungalow.
The cost of carrying out an energy retrofit on a social housing home varies considerably depending on factors such as dwelling size, year of construction, dwelling condition and construction type. My Department gathers data at programme level and does not collate granular level information on the cost associated with each individual property upgraded. This information may be available from the local authorities themselves.
