Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 5 May 2022
66. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the correct procedures and rules regarding the allocation of social housing by approved housing bodies; if the nomination of new tenants is made by the local authority; and if not, if the nomination is made by another body. [20734/22]
View answerHouseholds wishing to obtain social housing support from a local authority or an Approved Housing Body must first apply to the relevant local authority for a social housing assessment. Where the household is deemed to qualify for support it is placed on the housing authority’s waiting list and offers of suitable accommodation are made in accordance with the authority’s allocation scheme as it becomes available.
Local authority allocation schemes are made by the respective elected members in accordance with section 22 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Allocation Regulations. The schemes specify, among other things, how dwellings are allocated to households on the housing waiting and transfer lists and the order of priority for such allocations. In accordance with the 2009 Act, allocation schemes shall apply to dwellings owned or under the control of local authorities, as well as dwellings provided by Approved Housing Bodies with Exchequer funding.
Where a vacancy arises in a dwelling owned by an Approved Housing Body, the relevant local authority may nominate a suitable household from its housing or transfer lists to the Approved Housing Body, having regard to the order of priority set out in its allocation scheme.
