Affordable Housing

Forty two [42] houses were sold as Affordable units throughout the County at the following locations:

Ballyhale	1
Callan	1
Ferrybank	2
Fiddown	1
Graignamanagh	6
Kilkenny City (The Weir, Margaretsfield & Glenbaun)	22
Knocktopher	3
Mooncoin	2
Thomastown	3
Urlingford	1

A total of €2,073,825 was paid out on 12 Affordable Housing Loans.

Affordable Housing at Kingscourt, Callan

 

Capital Investment Programme

An allocation of €21 million was received from the Department in 2008. This is the highest allocation ever received by Kilkenny County Council for the provision of Social Housing.

71 New houses were completed by Kilkenny County Council at:

Ballragget	2
Bennettsbridge	2
Callan	2
Castlecomer	1
Freshford	4
Gowran	5
Kilkenny	17
Kilmoganny	3
Mooncoin	17
Mullinvat	2
Skeoghvosteen	4
Slieverue	11
Rurals	1

39 New houses/apartments were provided through Part V at:

Ballyhale	4
Callan	4
Ferrybank	4
Fiddown	4
Kilmacow	2
Kilkenny	2
Kilmoganny	1
Knocktopher	2
Piltown	12
Thomastown	4

 

Approx 128 Houses are under construction at 31/12/2008 through the Council's own construction programme and Part V developments.

There were 52 casual vacancies during 2008.

 

Estate Management & Community Development

• Liaison with Community Committees (123 hours), delivery of training and increase of committees to 69.
• Expenditure of Estate Enhancement Funding, Estate Management Budget on RAPID designated estates and local authority estates across the City and County, and liaison on expenditure of Local Authority grant funding.
• Local Authority Tidy Estates Competition.
• 3nd Annual Estate Management Conference held on November, 20th, 2008. Theme of conference, Interculturalism & Diversity.
• Promotion of affiliation to Community and Voluntary Forum and Group Insurance Scheme.
• €126,000 approximately allocated to estate management grant funding, supply of gardening equipment, landscaping projects, plants and gardening materials, minor refurbishment on estates, installation of fencing.
• Extension of Hebron Park Community House - The Happe House is due to be completed in 2009.
• Under Sustainable Communities Fund scheme expenditure of €49,798  for community committee training, Pre-Development support for residents at St. Catherine's Halting Site, Wetlands and Equality and Diversity training and seminars for staff of City and County Council.
• Tenancy Support - Sudanese Families resettled under UNHCR Refugees Programme.

 

Homeless Assistance

Kilkenny Homeless Action Team (KHAT), an interagency team comprising of statutory and non-governmental agency representatives meets weekly to discuss and agree service provision to homeless persons presenting to any of the participating organizations. The representative agencies are: Kilkenny Local Authorities, HSE South, Kilkenny Womens Refuge, Good Shepherd Centre and Focus Ireland.

Presentations by the HAT have been made to the County Development Board and to the medical staff of the Dept. of Psychiatry in 2008.

The publication of the new National Homeless Strategy - "The Way Home: A Strategy to Address Adult Homelessness in Ireland 2008-2013" in August 2008 will bring further challenges to homeless service provision in Kilkenny, with KHAT, the Homeless Services Providers Group and The Homeless Forum working together in relation to policy and service development.

In 2008 a total of 169 individuals/families were offered assistance by Kilkenny Local Authorities Homeless Services.

 

Housing Adaptation Grants

Forty three (43) Disabled Person Grants were paid out to disabled people to assist them in undertaking necessary renovation works to meet their needs in their homes. Total expenditure was €534,525

Thirteen (13) Essential Repair Grants were paid to elderly people to assist them with essential repairs in their homes. Total expenditure was €36,971.

A new Housing Adaptation Scheme was introduced by the Department from 1st November 2007.

Three(3) Mobility Aids Grants were paid out in 2008. Total expenditure was €11,146.

Thirty one (31) Housing Aid for the Elderly grants were paid out. Total expenditure was €236,442.

Ten (10) Housing Adaptation Grants were paid out in 2008. Total expenditure was €124,061.00.

 

Housing and Accommodation

Kilkenny County Council adopts a pro-active and flexible approach in meeting the challenges of providing accommodation for those in need and assisting other who can afford it, by obtaining their own accommodation.

Kilkenny County Council actively promotes all housing schemes available in the interest of providing housing accommodation, social integration and putting in place measures to sustain communities.

 

Housing Loans

6 Shared Ownership loans and four Annuity loans were paid out in 2008.

4 House Improvement loan was paid out in 2008.

8 tenants purchased their homes under the Tenant Purchase Scheme with one availing of a loan from Kilkenny County Council.

A total of €1,242,751 was paid out on Housing Loans.

 

Housing Support Services

Kilkenny County Council engages the services of Focus Ireland to provide an Outreach/Tenancy Sustainment service. This service will be provided to clients leaving the Homeless services and moving to independent living. It will also be available to tenants who are at risk of losing their tenancy due to a number of reasons. The service is 90% funded by the Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government. The service commenced in the summer of 2007 and continued throughout 2008.

 

Private Rented Sector

Under the Private Residential Tenancies Act 2004 registration of tenancies in private rented accommodation is now being operated by the Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB). All Landlords must register each tenant in their respective rented accommodation at a cost of €70 per tenancy.

Kilkenny County Council has responsibility for the enforcement of the Regulations under the Housing Acts relating to rent books and standards of private rented accommodation. The Council carried out 57 inspections on private rented accommodation during 2008.

Kilkenny County Council administers the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS).  This scheme applies to people who are in receipt of rent supplement usually for more that 18 months and who are in need of long term housing. The Council assessed 132 people for the Scheme in 2008 and transferred 84 tenancies to RAS during 2008.

 

Travellers

The Annual Count of Traveller Families carried out in November 2008 indicates that the total number of Traveller families in the functional area of Kilkenny Local Authorities is 122.

"The Traveller Accommodation Programme 2005 - 2008" completed it's timeframe in December 2008, with significant progress made in achieving the targets set out in the programme - 35 families to be provided with permanent accommodation. From a total of 40 offers of accommodation made to Traveller families within the lifetime of the programme, 26 families were provided with permanent accommodation.

17 families were offered assistance under the Supplementary Welfare Scheme (Rent Allowance for Private Rented Accommodation), while 7 families were assisted with a loan under Section 25 of the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 for the purchase of a caravan.

"The Draft Traveller Accommodation Programme 2009-2013" was prepared during 2008 and will be submitted to the Members for adoption in 2009.

Kilkenny Local Authorities continue to support a number of additional services to the Traveller Community, and in 2008 facilities were improved on St. Catherine's Halting Site to include refurbishment of the service units on the individual bays; the afterschools / creche facility and the provision of a designated play area for the pre-school children.

 

Voluntary Housing Scheme

Thirty four [34] units of accommodation were completed in 2008 by Voluntary Housing Associations at Callan (7) and Kilkenny City (27).

Two projects are under construction at the 31/12/2008 at the following locations;

• Danesfort - Danesfort Voluntary Housing - 6 units
• Kilkenny City - SOS - 7 units

Moneenroe Voluntary Housing

 

Housing Highlights

• 162 Families were housed by Kilkenny County Council in 2008.
• 27 Housing loans were advanced in 2008.
• 100 Housing grants were paid in 2008.

 

Social Housing at Polerone Green, Mooncoin, Co. Kilkenny