Housing for People with a Disability

Housing for people with a disability involves a cross government response:

• The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's role involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of local authorities in addressing housing at local level.
• Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of housing for people with a disability and related services rests with individual local authorities. For further information please contact your local authority
• The Housing Agency is responsible for driving and overseeing the implementation of the actions in terms of progressing housing provision for people with disabilities. This is done primarily through its various subgroups.
• The Health Service Executive (HSE) is responsible for the provision of healthcare and social supports for people with a disability and manages a significant annual budget for such services. Details are available are on the HSE website
• The Item was unpublished or removed also provides funding to facilitate housing and support for people with a disability and in collaboration with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is involved in the provision of a national framework of policy and legislation for housing of people with disabilities.
• The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth coordinates the development of Government disability policy on a wider scale. This in turn informs Department policy on housing.

The National Housing Strategy for Disabled People 2022 – 2027 was published on 14 January 2022. It is a joint publication of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage; the Department of Health; and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. The Strategy sets out how the Government will put in place the frameworks to ensure that the housing and support needs of disabled people are comprehensively addressed. The Housing Agency is preparing a detailed implementation plan for the Strategy.

The overarching vision of the Strategy is to facilitate disabled people to live independently and be included in their communities. The National Housing Strategy for Disabled People 2022 – 2027 aims to build upon the work achieved through the previous National Housing Strategy for People with a Disability 2011-2016 (extended to 2021). It documents the framework for the delivery of housing for disabled people through mainstream housing policy. The Strategy has been developed under the guiding principles of Housing for All – A new Housing Plan for Ireland.

The Department also published the National Housing Strategy for People with a Disability (2011-2016) - in Easy Read format.

Housing for All – A new Housing Plan for Ireland was published in September 2021. It is the government’s housing policy to 2030. It is designed to increase and improve housing options and supports for people with a disability. It will achieve this by:

• delivering a new National Housing Strategy 2022 - 2027
• ensuring Local Authority Housing Delivery Action Plans set out how dedicated social housing provision appropriate to the needs of people with a disability will be delivered matching the scale and extent of housing need identified for people with a disability
• ensuring Local Authorities consider the housing needs of people with a disability through the Housing Need and Demand Assessment Framework, which will inform their Housing Strategies as part of their Development Plan process
• reviewing the range of housing grants available to assist with meeting specific housing needs, including the Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, and implementing relevant changes
• nominating Disability Friendly Housing Technical Advisors in each Local Authority
• quarterly reporting by Housing and Disability Steering Groups on the implementation of their local strategic plans regarding housing for people with a disability.

Full details of the plan are available on the Housing for All website.

Implementation of the second National Housing Strategy for Disabled People 2022-2027 is being coordinated by the Housing Agency. It is preparing a new Implementation Plan for the Strategy. It will be published in 2022 detailing how outcomes will be achieved.

Structures being established to drive progress and to monitor implementation of the Strategy at local and national level include:

• a National Implementation Subgroup to meet bi-monthly and to be chaired by The Housing Agency
• Local Authority Housing and Disability Steering Groups , which were established under the first Strategy are a very effective forum for the delivery of the outcomes of the Strategy at local level. They have a key role at the centre of local implementation under Housing for All and the 2nd Strategy. Membership and terms of reference of each Group are being reviewed based on the requirements of Housing for All and the 2nd Strategy
• National thematically-focused groups are also being established in 2022 for each Theme for the lifetime of the Strategy. These will advise the National Implementation Subgroup, as required, on the actions under each Theme. The membership of the groups will be drawn from people with lived experience, experts in the relevant areas and other interested parties
• Regional inter-agency groups will be established based on the HSE Community Health Organisation areas but will be aligned to any re-organisation of these areas over the lifetime of the Strategy. Their role will be to bring together the local authorities’ dedicated disability representatives and the HSE dedicated housing representatives for both disability services and mental health services to allow for cooperation and collaboration at an operational level. A national forum of all the regional Groups will be held annually.