Ms Jackie Harrington:

The Deputy is right. Joined-up thinking is required between ourselves and the other organisations. The task force I mentioned earlier is providing information supports to people before they leave direct provision. A pilot was undertaken as part of the work of that task force in which the Department, the housing authority, MABS, the Citizens Information Board, CIB and so on met with groups of people who were transitioning. It also was attended by those who were not transitioning and did not have status, purely for information purposes. As part of that programme, people were advised to engage with the Department of Social Protection once they receive status so that their full social welfare entitlement could be determined. They were also advised to engage with the local authority on their housing needs assessment. They were being asked where they would like to go in terms of locations. It was a pilot programme and based on its success and usefulness, the task force agreed that it will be rolled out on an ongoing basis. It will be facilitated by the CIB, which will bring all the various Government Departments and agencies together.

There is no legal requirement that the housing needs assessment be carried out in the local authority area in which a person resides.