COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

south dublin county council crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, March 08, 2010

QUESTION NO. 2

QUESTION: Councillor C. King

To ask the Manager (A) how many applications for grants currently exist under the housing aid for older people, housing adaption grant, mobility aids grant etc, (B) how many of these works is it envisaged will be commenced this year and (C) how many of these will be private and how many will be social?

REPLY:

The Council currently operates 2 schemes to assist those in privately owned accommodation to carry out adaptations on the basis of medical need to their dwellings under the Housing Adaptation Grants Scheme for People with a Disability and  the Mobility Aids Grant Scheme. The  Housing Aid for Older People Scheme is also available to assist older people living in poor housing conditions in privately owned properties to have necessary repairs or improvements carried out. Tenants of the Council can apply for alterations on the basis of medical need under the Disabled Persons Grants Scheme.

The number of applications currently on hand is as follows:

Housing Adaptation Grant Scheme: 119 applications on hand

Mobility Aids Grant Scheme: 5 applications on hand

Housing Aid for Older People: 14 applications on hand

Disabled Persons Grant Scheme for Tenants: 336 applications on hand.

It is important to note that the 3 schemes that deal with the needs of applicants who are living in privately owned accomodation are funded 80% by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and 20% from the Council's own resources. The Disabled Persons Grants Scheme for Tenants is normally funded 100% from the Council's own resources. As funding levels for 2010 for these schemes have not been finalised yet, it is not possible to state with any certainty how many applications will be carried out this year nor how these will be broken down in terms of grants for those in privately owned dwellings and grants for those in Council rented dwellings. It is expected that the funding position for 2010 will be clarified shortly. Subject to the availability of at least similar levels of funding to that available in 2009,it is hoped that the 2010 figures would at least mirror the figures for 2009 which are as follows:

 Total number of Grant applications approved in 2009 under all schemes: 519 applications.A summary of approvals under the different grant types is set out below.

Number of Grants Approved for Private Dwellings: 408. This figure is comprised of 226 Housing Adaptation Grants for People with a Disability, 24 Mobility Aids Grants, 105 Housing Aid for Older People Grants and 53 grants paid under the old Disabled Persons Grant Scheme, which has been discontinued and replaced by the Housing Adaptation Grants Scheme for People with a Disability and the Mobility Aids Grants Scheme.

Number of Disabled Persons Grants Approved for Tenants: 111 applications. 

The 2009 Allocation was €4,545,000 with an additional €125,000 acquired late 2009 and of this allocation €1,019,330 was provided by teh Council through its own resources.