COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, October 14, 2024

QUESTION NO. 52

QUESTION: Councillor F. Timmons

To ask the Chief Executive would he give a report to how the highest priority vulnerable families with a disability are prioritised. Report to include when appropriate accommodation is expected be found for them in order to meet the UN Convention the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

REPLY:

In accordance with our Housing Allocations Scheme, applicants approved on the basis of medical priority are placed on the medical list which is operated on a time on list basis and suitable accommodation is allocated through specially adapted new build or existing accommodation when available or provided. Every effort is made to provide persons with a disability or specific medical need with an appropriate home having regard to medical requirements, housing needs and proximity to service providers and supports.

Housing Applicants who have been awarded medical priority for standard housing have access to the Choice Based Letting (CBL) system. However, applicants who have been awarded medical priority for specially adapted housing do not have access to CBL where their needs are very specific and cannot be met and require delivery of specially adapted homes.

Where an existing specially adapted property becomes available, reports from occupational therapists and other medical supports are assessed to determine the property meet an applicant’s needs, before an offer of housing is made. In some cases, a site visit to the property is carried out with the applicants and their support team to assess the suitability of the property.  All applicants can also at any stage discuss their accommodation needs with staff in the allocation’s sections.

On this basis, neither purpose-built, specially adapted properties, nor properties that have had significant Disabled Persons’ Grants works carried out are advertised through CBL. Instead, these properties are usually matched with the needs of a housing/transfer applicant. In some cases an existing tenant awaiting significant DPG works to be carried out on their current home may also be considered for the property as the terms of the scheme require the Council to make the best use of all specially adapted housing stock and it can also be more feasible to transfer a tenant to an available specially adapted home where it is excessively costly or challenging to carry out the required works to their current property.

Under our Housing Delivery Action Plan 2022-2026, we are committed to increased delivery of suitable homes to meet the needs of households with medical priority through our own construction programme, Part V delivery, partnership with AHBs and through casual vacancies of specially adapted accommodation in our existing housing stock.