Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 24 March 2021
702. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the average period of time it takes for public housing projects to go from initial design stage funding to completion, by local authority in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15306/21]
View answerThe Programme for Government commits to increasing the supply of public, social, and affordable homes, supported with funding of €3.3 billion in Budget 2021. In progressing this major construction programme it is important to pursue timely delivery while at the same time, local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) must also ensure value for money in line with the Government’s Public Spending Code.
For public housing construction projects, the period of time from initial design to completion varies greatly depending on many factors including:
- Scale of development (number of housing units)
- Type of development (apartment blocks, housing estates, mixed)
- Contract type (design/build, traditional)
- Construction methodology (modular/off-site construction, traditional)
- Site conditions and accessibility (e.g. city centre brownfield sites generally have longer construction contract programmes)
There is also a range of delivery programmes utilised by local authorities and AHBs to deliver new public housing, with different timelines and funding arrangements. For traditional public housing developments greater than €6m in value, local authorities work to a pre-construction programme of 59 weeks from initial approval to starting on site. This time period compares favourably with the delivery of private housing and it includes all local authority activities such as:
- Initial Design
- Professional services tendering (for design and project management)
- Public Consultations
- Statutory approvals including Part 8 process, Fire Safety, etc.
- Detailed design and costing development
- Tender documentation preparation
- Tendering
- Tender reports and contract award
The 59 week timeline includes 15 weeks for Department funding assessments and approvals, some of which occur in parallel with local authority activities.
Local authorities and AHBs can also use a Design & Build approach or the ‘Volumetric Framework’ established by Dublin City Council which can shorten their lead-in time to start on site due, for example, to Design & Build projects using off-site modular construction methodologies. For housing developments up to €6m, a process for a Single-Stage assessment and approval by my Department is available to the local authorities.
Local authorities and AHBs also deliver public housing via turnkey contracts with private developers where the delivery times can vary significantly depending on factors such as whether a project has planning permission and whether design work is already complete.
My Department publishes comprehensive programme level statistics on a quarterly basis on all social housing delivery activity. This is published on the statistics page of my Department’s website, at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provision/. These data are complete to the end of Q4 2020.
To provide transparency on the new social housing projects being advanced, my Department publishes a Social Housing Construction Status Report each quarter with details of all social housing developments completed or under construction in each local authority area. The report for 2020 is available at the following link: https://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-obrien-publishes-2020-social-housing-statistics/. These quarterly reports provide details of the social housing construction schemes completed, under construction or in the pre-construction for all local authority areas. I am keen to ensure that local authorities are proactive in adding to this pipeline and, working with the Approved Housing Bodies, in advancing their existing projects as speedily as possible.
The quarterly publication of the Social Housing Construction Status Report can also give Councillors and public representatives the opportunity to work with the local authority officials to press the advancement of these social housing delivery projects.
