Council vows to provide over 1,000 houses in four years
Meath County Council intends providing 1,018 housing units in the county between now and 2026 in order to achieve its ambition of 'Housing for All' within the county.
The target is to provide homes for social housing applicants and those impacted by the affordability constraints existing in certain areas of the county by the use of a number of mechanisms including direct construction (421), turnkey acquisition (37), Part V agreements in place (Meath County Council and approved housing bodies) 186, approved housing bodies 270, and leasing 104. The council said that the extent of social housing delivery in the county over the past five years had been “significant” and provided a strong basis to drive further housing delivery into the future.
Its social housing targets are as follows – 2022 (413 units), 2023 (323), 2024 (249), 2025 (267), 2026 (273). Affordable housing targets are as follows – 2022 (10 units), 2023 (28), 2024 (41), 2025 (36), 2026 (36). The gross housing demand on 30th March this year was 3,881, with the highest demand in the main population centres, Navan 1,436 applicants, Ashbourne 575, Laytown-Bettystown 531, Kells 516. The biggest demand is for one and two-bed units. In its presentation of housing need in the county, the council said that the number od single person/couple households in emergency accommodation increased significantly during the course of 2020 as a result of the Coid-19 panedmic and stood at 176 households at the end of March last.
Thirty six per cent of the overall housing needs exists in Navan. There were also 343 applicants on the council social housing waiting list who have a disability. Most of the applicants have a physical disability but there are also applicants with sensory, mental health or intellectual disabilities. The Draft County Meath Strategy for Housing People with a Disability 2021-26 was considered by the steering group in 2021 and submitted to the housing Agency.
This must now be reviewed to ensure it is aligned with the National Housing Strategy for Disabled People published in January this year and ensure that the target of 15 per cent of all housing supports being provided to applicants with a disability as set out in the National Strategy, is achieved. The council said this commitment will be actioned through the delivery of such units through this Housing Delivery Action Plan. It said the establishment of a Housing Disability Team will further strengthen cross-agency collaboration in the forward planning process for applicants with a disability.
The need for “age friendly” units will also be reflected in the county council’s delivery programme 2022-26, both in terms of older person applicants and existing tenants who wish to “right size” to such a unit. There are currently 449 applicants on the social housing waiting list who are aged 55 years or over and are single adult households.. In terms of existing council tenants, there are 179 tenants aged 70 years or over and are single adult households in properties of more than one bedroom.
Over the past three years 45 age friendly units have been delivered by Meath County Council or approved housing bodies, while a further 53 units across seven sites are at various stages in the pipeline.