Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will give a general outline and then I will come back to the Senator's specific points. Our Department provides funding to local authorities under the suite of housing adaptation grants for older people and people with a disability, to assist people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs, which also facilitates early return from hospital stays. Our objective in this is to keep older people living at home and independently for as long as possible. The grants include the housing adaptation grant for people with a disability, the mobility aids grant and the housing aid for older people grant, which are 80% funded by our Department, together with a 20% matching contribution from the resources of the local authority. The detailed administration of these schemes, including assessment, approval, prioritisation and apportionment between the three schemes, is the responsibility of local authorities. Funding of €81.25 million is available nationally in 2022 for the housing adaptation grants for older people and people with a disability scheme. The receipt and processing of housing grant applications has continued successfully throughout the pandemic and the carrying out of such works was specifically exempted from the construction restrictions under the public health regulations which were put in place.

The Housing Options for our Ageing Population policy statement emphasised my Department's commitment to streamlining the application process and ensuring that grants were more accessible to applicants. In this regard, my Department engaged with all 31 local authorities in 2019 to review the detailed administration of the grants. My Department also engaged with key stakeholders, including the National Disability Authority, ALONE and Age Friendly Ireland, which helped to bring greater clarity to the development of a single application form and updated guidelines. Subsequently, a revised single application form to cover the three grants, which was tested for plain English, issued to all local authorities together with revised guidelines for implementation. My Department is working to ensure full implementation of the new process, which will make the grant application process more accessible as well as standardising the individual local authority approach.

In addition to this improved streamlining of the grants scheme, Housing for All commits to undertaking a review of the range of housing grants available to assist with meeting specific housing needs, both for our ageing population and for people with a disability, which includes a review of the existing grant limits and income thresholds applicable to the grant schemes.This review is currently under way and it will be completed later this year. It is important to highlight the increased allocations for 2022, which were issued earlier this week to each local authority. The increase represents more than 8% of a national increase in allocations, continuing the overall year-on-year increases in the grants since 2014. However, I acknowledge that construction costs have stayed ahead of this 8% figure. This is a significant issue about which there is no doubt. The Department is conscious of it and it will work with the local authorities to resolve it through the review process.

Again, I acknowledge the role of local authority staff. The Senator is correct that they have been, and they continue to be, exemplary in the support they are giving to communities and to families who are trying to steer through this grant application process. The issue of rolling grants might be included in the review and it is something I will take back to the Department as well.