What is Social Housing Support?
Social housing support is housing provided by a local authority or an approved housing body to people who are assessed as being unable to afford housing from their own resources. If living in a local authority dwelling, the State is effectively your landlord.
How can I apply for Social Housing Support?
The provision of social housing is delivered through your Local Authority and an approved housing body. To qualify, you must be eligible for social housing, and you must be in need of social housing.
· The housing authority will assess your eligibility first.
· If you are eligible, it will then assess if you need social housing.
To be regarded as eligible for social housing you must satisfy the income criteria. You must also show that you do not have suitable alternative accommodation.
More information on social housing provision can be found here
What is HAP?
The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a form of social housing support provided by your local authority.
Local authorities make a monthly rental payment on your behalf to your landlord, subject to terms and conditions, including rent limits. In return, the HAP tenant pays a weekly contribution towards the rent to the local authority.
HAP allows you to work full-time, while still receiving housing support
How do I apply for HAP?
You must be qualified for social housing support by your local authority, which means you must qualify to go onto your local authority housing waiting list. If you are already on your local authority’s housing list and are not currently in a form of social housing, you will be eligible for HAP. Your local authority can check if you qualify for social housing support and HAP. More information on HAP can be found here
What is Homeless HAP?
The Homeless HAP scheme helps people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. It gives more supports to tenants than the regular HAP scheme. These extra supports include deposits and upfront rent payments to help homeless households find a suitable HAP tenancy. The Homeless HAP scheme is also known as the Place Finder Service. This service is managed by local authorities. If you are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, you may apply to your local authority for these extra supports.
How do I apply for Homeless HAP?
To qualify for Homeless HAP, a household must be accepted as homeless within the meaning of section 2 of the Housing Act 1988 by one of the 4 Dublin local authorities.
What is the Rental Accommodation scheme?
The Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) is run by local authorities. The local authority makes the final decision about who is eligible for the scheme. In general, people who are getting Rent Supplement for more than 18 months are considered for RAS
How do I apply for Rental Accommodation?
Under the Rental Accommodation Scheme, local authorities draw up contracts with landlords to provide housing for people with a long-term housing need. The landlord agrees to provide housing for a specific amount of time, and this is covered in the contract with the local authority. The local authority pays the rent directly to the landlord. You may continue to contribute to your rent, but you pay this contribution to your local authority, not to your landlord.
For more information on RAS click here
What is the Exceptional Social Grounds scheme?
Provision for the recommendation of a Priority under the Exceptional Social Grounds Scheme is contained in the Housing Allocations Scheme 2018, Section 7.5. A recommendation in respect of a Priority on Exceptional Social Grounds may be made by a Senior Social Worker or by the Chief Housing Welfare Officer in the case of an Appeal.
A priority will only be recommended in cases where the social circumstances relating to an applicant’s housing need are deemed to be of an extremely serious nature. In order to prioritise applicants with the most urgent need a designated staff member of the Social Work Section will examine all of the written evidence made available by an applicant and consider whether the circumstances, as described, meets all of the following criteria:
- The circumstances relating to where the applicant lives are extremely difficult and significantly more urgent in comparison with other housing and transfer applicants and
- The circumstances are proven to be exceptional e.g. not commonly experienced by others or experienced by others in the general area where the applicant lives and
- The applicant’s difficulty can only be resolved by a change of housing and
- That change of housing cannot be, or could not have been, sourced by any other means and
- The issue cannot be catered for /addressed under any other Scheme or potentially improved by intervention from another appropriate agency.
How do I apply for the Exceptional Social Grounds scheme?
1. Before you can be considered under the Exceptional Social Grounds (ESG) Scheme you must have applied for and been accepted onto the Housing Waiting List or have applied to go on the Transfer list.
2. You must complete the Exceptional Social Grounds (ESG) application form.
3. All application forms must be signed by the housing or transfer applicant/s.
4. Applications must be supported by a signed and dated report or letter that must be on official headed paper containing valid contact details from a third-party professional who has first-hand knowledge of your situation.
5. All supporting documents, including reports and letters, that you wish to have considered as part of the application, must be listed on the ESG Application Form at Section 3. Make sure you submit them with the application form or say what ones will be sent in later otherwise they may not be included for consideration under the Exceptional Social Grounds Scheme. It is your responsibility to ensure that the documents listed arrive in the Social Work Section.
6. Letters and reports must be written within the last six months, be fully legible and should be relevant to your housing issue.
7. If your case is based on an allegation that you are subject to anti – social behaviour such as threats, harassment or intimidation this must be investigated by the Area Housing Manager and An Garda Síochána in the first instance.
8. A report from the Area Housing Manager and/or the Anti-Social Behaviour Unit and/or An Garda Síochána may be requested in order to assist in assessing your application. Proof of significant risk must be obtained from An Garda Síochána and the Area Housing Manager and/or the Anti-Social Behaviour Unit. Such cases will normally only be considered under the ESG Scheme where the allegations of anti-social behaviour relate to the immediate vicinity of your home and where they are directed exclusively against you or another family member who has permission to reside in the tenancy.
What is Medical Priority Housing?
Provision for the recommendation of a priority under the Exceptional Medical Grounds Scheme is contained in the Scheme of Letting Priorities 2018, Section 7.4. Medical priority will only be provided if it is relevant to an aspect of the current or required housing. Important to note that having a medical diagnosis will not automatically result in priority unless it creates a specific housing need.
How do I apply for Medical Priority Housing?
You apply at your local authority office and fill out the appropriate documentation, this is known as HMD Form 1. A form must be completed by two medical professionals. The local authority’s Chief Medical Officer will then make a decision, which can be appealed.
Fingal County Council have provided a step-by-step guide on applying for this
What is the Housing Adaptation Grant?
The Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability is a grant for people with a physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual disability. It provides funding so you can improve how you enter and move around your home.
You can use this grant to make your home more accessible by:
- Adding ramps or other ways to access your home.
- Extending your home to create more space, for example, adding a downstairs bedroom.
- Adding accessible bathroom facilities, such as an accessible shower or a ground-floor bathroom or toilet.
- Installing a stair lift.
- Installing grab rails.
- Installing a fixed track hoist. (This is a ceiling or wall-mounted track with a sling attached to it, which means you can be mechanically lifted and moved to different places along the track).
- The grant should be available to provide funds to adapt your home to build a sensory room or space.
How do I apply for the Housing Adaptation Grant?
Download an application form or contact your local authority and ask for one to be posted to you.
The form has a section that must be completed and signed by a doctor.
You may also need professional advice from a building contractor when filling in the section about the work you want to get done and how much you think it will cost.
Send the completed form to your local authority along with any documents that are needed, such as:
· Proof of your household income for the previous tax year · Proof that the Local Property Tax (LPT) for the home is in order
· A letter from the landlord giving you permission to get the work done, if you are renting
· An occupational therapist’s (OT) report if you are using the grant to add an extension, get a stair lift or make a big change to how a room is being used.
The local authority can arrange for the OT assessment, or you can employ an OT yourself and get up to €250 of the cost from the local authority as part of the grant. You can search for an OT on the website of the Association of Occupational Therapists Ireland. The application form gives full details of the documents you will need as proof.
More information on this grant can be found here
