Violet-Anne Wynne
Question:972. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to provide an update on plans (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39354/23]
View answerMonday, 11 September 2023
Questions (972)
Written answers
Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes and 54,000 affordable homes by 2030. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5bn in funding through the Land Development Agency and €5bn funding through the Housing Finance Agency.
My Department publishes the Social Housing Construction Status Report (CSR). The CSR provides details of social housing developments and their location that have been completed, are under construction or are progressing through the various stages of the design and tender processes. The most recent publication was for Quarter 4 2022. All Construction Status Reports are available at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/cb885-social-housing-construction-projects-status-reports/.
A version of the CSR file can also be downloaded for analysis at the link below: data.gov.ie/dataset/social-housing-construction-status-report-q4-2022?package_type=dataset
A key action of Housing for All required local authorities to develop Housing Delivery Action Plans to include details of social and affordable housing delivery. The Plans set out details of both social and affordable housing delivery as appropriate over the period 2022-2026, in line with targets set under Housing for All. I also asked each local authority to assess the level of housing demand with affordability constraint projected for their area based on the Housing Need and Demand Assessment Tool and plan their provision accordingly. Clare County Council’s Plan has been published on their own website and is available at this link www.clarecoco.ie/services/housing/news/clare-county-council-housing-delivery-action-plan.html
Local authorities with the highest levels of affordable housing need were asked to prepare Affordable Delivery Plans as part of their overall Plans and were set five-year Affordable Delivery Targets. While Clare does not have a specific target as average house price levels in the county are still below the national median, my Department met with Clare County Council recently to discuss the potential submission of an affordable housing project following a localised pilot study aimed at identifying affordability issues in certain towns within the local authority area.
Where there are localised challenges, funding can be made available to develop a scheme in line with Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) criteria. Circular 06/2023 issued to all local authorities on the 21 February 2023 providing full guidance on preparing an AHF application. Further assistance with developing schemes is available from my Department, the Housing Agency and the Housing Delivery Co-ordination Office within the Local Government Management Association.
In addition, the First Home Scheme, which was launched in July 2022, supports first-time buyers in purchasing new houses and apartments in the private market through the use of an equity share model. Full information on the scheme is available on the First Home Scheme dedicated website, www.firsthomescheme.ie. Statistical data on delivery across all affordable housing streams during 2022 as published on my Department's website shows that activity has begun to take place under this scheme for Clare and is available at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provision/#affordable-housing-delivery.
Finally, the new Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant is also available in Clare and it provides for grants for refurbishment of vacant properties of up to €50,000 or €70,000 if the property is derelict. I also announced last year, a new Ready to Build serviced sites scheme under the Fund where local authorities will provide sites at a discount to people who want to build their own home. Information on both of these schemes are available directly from Clare County Council.