“€3,672,000 is being made available to help meet Fingal’s housing needs in a variety of ways”, says Fine Gael TD for Dublin Fingal, Alan Farrell. The funding forms part of a €91 million Government package to make more social housing available to those who need it and also to improve the standard of housing for people with disabilities, as well as retrofitting homes to improve energy efficiency.
“In Fingal, over €969,000 is being made available in 2015 to bring 59 vacant social housing units back into use. It is a terrible legacy of the recent economic crisis that there are boarded up social housing units around the country when there are people urgently in need of accommodation. This funding package seeks to return these units to use and give people and families the fresh start they need in a new home. Overall, Fingal County Council aims to bring 1,376 social housing units on-stream over the coming two years.
“Older people and people with disabilities living in social housing in Fingal are also set to benefit from over €2,145,000 in investment in Housing Adaptation Grants. This is part of a €50.5 million package for Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability across the country. The funding will allow extensions to be built for people with a disability as well as housing adaptations to improve mobility aid, such as stair lifts, access ramps etc. A further €557,000 will be made available for local authority house adaptations and extensions to meet the needs of tenants with a disability and to deal with overcrowding.
“The third element of this housing funding programme focuses on energy retrofitting to make social housing more energy efficient. Investment under phase one of this scheme to Fingal County Council and I have been informed that the allocation to Fingal under phase two of this scheme will be announced in the near future.
“I am pleased with the allocation of this funding which is essential in order to bring more people off the housing waiting list and improve the quality of life for older people and people with disabilities. This will be positive news for many individuals and families throughout the North County and I will continue to actively engage with Minister Coffey in relation to social housing provision in Dublin Fingal.”