ALONE welcome Government’s new Social Housing Strategy
ALONE, the charity that supports older people in need, welcomes the 35,000 houses promised in new Social Housing Strategy announced by Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly today.
Sean Moynihan, Chief Executive Officer of ALONE commented, “We welcome this concerted effort from the Government to get back on track with the development of social housing. Today’s announcement from Minister Alan Kelly has been long awaited, but thankfully it’s a strong strategy that will benefit thousands of people hard hit in recent years”.
Moynihan continued, “Whilst today’s announcements are definitively a move in the right direction, the system must be streamlined and vigilantly managed to ensure the houses are delivered efficiently and effectively. The government needs to open the doors of communication with housing providers like ALONE so that we can deliver housing with supports at the rapid rate required. Particularly when housing older people, supports are inherently important as they help keep older people safely and happily residing within the community.”
“There are a lot of areas of unnecessary red tape that must be removed to ensure the timely and efficient delivery of this strategy, and we feel that a system for the proper regulation of Approved Housing Bodies is crucial. We implore the government to look into long-term sustainable solutions that will allow Approved Housing Bodies to make a profit that they can re-invest into social housing. It’s also vital that the properties built match people’s needs, we have an ageing population and over half of the housing needed is for singles and couples”, said Moynihan.
Moynihan concluded, “A €10 million investment into Social Housing was announced six months ago and we will be very interested to hear the results of how many new homes were delivered as a result of this when the report goes to An Taoiseachon Monday”.
ALONE can be contacted on (01) 679 1032 for those who have concerns about their own wellbeing, or the wellbeing of a vulnerable older person in the community or visit www.alone.ie