Cork City Council releases Action Plan to deliver social and affordable homes
27/07/2022
Cork City Council has published its Housing Delivery Action Plan which sets out details of the Council’s delivery of both social and affordable housing covering the period 2022-2026, in line with the targets set out by the Government under its "Housing for All" housing strategy.
Cork City Council’s Action Plan provides for the delivery of up to 5,671 social and affordable homes across the city from 2022-2026, in accordance with the targets as set by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, with 3,934 social homes and 1,737 affordable homes to be delivered in that timeframe. It is proposed, consistent with government policy, that the Local Authority and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) will each contribute 50% in the delivery of the overall social housing targets. Affordable housing is proposed to be delivered via three streams, i.e., Local Authorities (LAs), AHBs and the Land Development Agency (LDA).
The Affordable Housing Delivery Target as set by the Department of Housing Local Government and Heritage for Cork City totals 1,737 homes, with Cork City Council (LA delivery) to provide 378 homes, and the balance to be delivered by AHBs and the LDA (through affordable purchase and cost rental schemes). It is noted that these targets are deemed minimum affordable delivery targets.
The City Council is confident, in partnership with both AHBs and the LDA, that the proposed housing delivery detailed within this Housing Delivery Action Plan can be delivered during the period 2022-2026. The City Council, given its excellent track record in the area of social housing delivery over the last 5 years in particular, aligned to its current pipeline of new affordable housing units shows its willingness to meet the challenges head on and with the support of the Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage in the areas of funding and resourcing it can meet the ambitious delivery targets set out in this Action Plan.
The Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr. Deirdre Forde stated that ‘This is the first Plan in recent times to deliver both social and affordable homes in Cork City and I am delighted to see such an amazing number of homes being committed to in the Plan and supported by Government.’
Ms. Ann Doherty, Chief Executive, Cork City Council stated that ‘This is a most ambitious Action Plan and undertaking that will involve considerable commitment and focus from all stakeholders, both internal and external. Plans like this do not appear without considerable work behind the scenes, I would like to thank my colleagues in the Council for their efforts in preparing this Plan."