Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent)
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887.To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the reason for the delays in processing housing applications and HMD1 forms by local authorities, with a current waiting list of 12 weeks in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35802/24]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended.

A revised Social Housing Support Application Form was introduced with effect from 19 April 2021. The new form includes an additional form which an applicant who wants to apply for assessment for priority support based on medical need or disability must complete (HMD-Form 1). The new form is for anyone applying for social housing or a social housing transfer due to a disability or medical grounds.

The new forms states that an occupational therapist report must be provided where there is a need for a specific accommodation requirement. The new form also provides for a variety and wider range of healthcare professionals to complete the form than previous iterations. This can include professionals involved with the person with a disability or medical condition, such as a consultant, general practitioner, mental health nurse, public health nurse, occupational therapist or social worker.

My Department issued National Guidelines for the Assessment and Allocation Process for Social Housing Provision for People with a Disability in 2017 to assist in streamlining the management of the housing assessment and allocation process for disabled people, including those living in the community and those transitioning to the community from residential care. These guidelines are intended to support housing authorities in carrying out assessments of housing need for disabled people within a planned and structured framework to ensure that their needs can be assessed as effectively as possible in a timely manner. These guidelines provide detail on the role played by occupational therapists in the assessment and allocation of Social Housing Support.

The Guidelines are available at the following link: www.gov.ie/pdf/?file=https://assets.gov.ie/120722/35f5a5e6-afdf-445d-bb5e-c5f61cf529de.pdf#page=null

Regulation 12 of the 2011 Regulations prescribes the timescales for the processing of applications by local authorities and provides that, subject to conditions, a local authority shall deal with an application within a period of 12 weeks. Local authorities will prioritise housing needs assessments for those in greatest need and ensure that such applications are dealt with within time-frames that are significantly shorter that the statutory maximum.

If the local authority requires additional information from the applicant, it should request that information as early into the assessment process as possible. In accordance with Regulations the applicant has four weeks from the time of the request to provide the requested information/documentation to the local authority.

Where it is not possible for the applicant to provide any information/documentation requested by the local authority within the four-week period (e.g. where documentation is being sought from a third party that has been delayed), a local authority may, if it feels it appropriate, grant an extension to the applicant to provide the requested information/documentation. Local authorities then have six weeks after receipt of additional information requested to process the application. In any event, the processing of a valid application by a local authority shall not exceed 14 weeks after the initial 12 weeks from the date of application has expired.