Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 February 2021
297. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to facilitate greater tenant participation in community development, empowerment and estate management within local authority housing estates. [5686/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraLocal authorities are responsible under the Housing Acts for the management and maintenance of their housing stock and the management of their estates, which includes taking the appropriate measures, and putting in place the structures, to facilitate and enable tenants’ participation in estate management.
Tenants are encouraged to become actively involved in Residents' Associations and where these representative groups do not exist, local authorities can assist residents in establishing them. Local authorities can also provide training and support to better enable this participation, including pre-tenancy courses and the provision of tenant handbooks. Some local authorities have designated Estate Management Teams and Tenant Liaison Officers or equivalent staff who can deal individually with any query that residents have regarding their tenancies. They support the Residents' Association or representative groups for the area and support the tenant participation process, they can provide grants towards estate maintenance to such groups, and run annual best kept estate competitions. There is interagency collaboration in the area of community policing and community representation on Local Community Safety Fora. Residents are also involved in the implementation of the antisocial behaviour strategies applicable to their local authority area.
