Our Promise to Our Communities: Housing’s role in tackling health inequalities
As we embark on our forthcoming three-year corporate strategy – Our Promise to Our Communities – we are driven by ambition and a steadfast commitment to addressing the challenges facing housing in Northern Ireland, writes Grainia Long, Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive.
We were delighted with the feedback we have received on our recent consultation which underlined how this strategy is not merely about transforming housing, it is to be a catalyst for societal change – driving early intervention, protecting against climate change, fostering sustainable economic growth and crucially, ending health inequalities.
The priority given to housing throughout the Programme for Government and in the Department for Communities’ Housing Supply Strategy, has given housing professionals working in the sector a great boost. Both show commitment across the Northern Ireland Executive and very much align with our own strategy.
We believe that through Our Promise to Our Communities, we can deliver transformative change that will benefit many households through good housing practices that prioritise people over numbers – creating healthier lives, cohesive neighbourhoods, sustainable growth opportunities, and brighter futures for generations ahead.
Housing is a critical social determinant of health, influencing physical and mental well-being. Poor-quality housing exacerbates health issues such as respiratory diseases and cardiovascular conditions; while overcrowding and the lack of affordable housing options increases stress and anxiety. Good housing conditions prevent illnesses, promote independent living, reduce poverty, enhance quality of life, and mitigate climate change effects. Over this three-year period, NIHE will adopt a strategic approach prioritising early intervention and prevention while implementing programmes that improve health outcomes across Northern Ireland. Addressing these challenges can reduce healthcare costs while improving public health outcomes: the cost of poor housing to the NHS across the UK is estimated at £1.4 billion annually.
Our new strategy prioritises reducing health inequalities throughout our role as a landlord and as the strategic housing authority for Northern Ireland.
Increasing affordable housing supply
Our housing supply challenges are substantial and deep rooted. This is illustrated by rising waiting lists and the widening gap between new housing supply along with the growing affordability and accessibility across all tenures including first time buyers, private renters and the social sector.
Preventing homelessness and reducing housing stress requires the provision of diverse housing types across different tenures along with alternative models of housing capable of addressing a wider variety of housing needs.
The programme for social housing new build development will be determined by available budget, and this has been under immense pressure over recent years. In the last decade, the target to start 2,000 new homes each year has only been met twice. At the start of 2024/25, the capital allocation for new build starts was as low as 400.
Over the course of the year through budget made available through monitoring rounds and the funding allocations by the Department for Communities, we were able to ensure that over 1,400 new homes were started. Much credit should be given to the response of the Housing Associations who were able to deliver when needed. Whilst this output and funding support was much welcomed, it still falls short of the target of 2,000 social homes required. We will continue to work alongside housing associations and the Department for Communities to deliver the target of 5,850 social homes to be started by 2027, as outlined in the Programme.
The Housing Supply Strategy launched by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons MLA in December is an ambitious plan very much linked to our own goals. It is welcome to see a cross department focus on challenges like land use planning challenges, infrastructure constraints, and skills shortages while emphasising energy efficiency and decarbonisation.
I very much welcome the emphasis on the use of public land and de-risking sites for housing associations. Additionality, aiming to secure robust investment for new-build social housing and optimise public land use. By de-risking sites and making them more feasible and ready for development– something we have successfully done in the past – we will help housing associations deliver much-needed homes.
2024 saw the first NIHE homes built in a generation. This pilot of six family homes in Sunningdale Gardens in North Belfast market has seen new houses built to Passive House standard to help ensure maximum comfort and minimal spend for our new tenants. Over the next three years we hope to introduce small pilot schemes to test new building design concepts and prepare NIHE to be building at scale once more.
Making homelessness rare and non-recurrent
We were very pleased that homelessness is another strategic priority within the Programme for Government, especially the prevention measures and cross-departmental working in order to tackle homelessness. Prevention, twinned with an accelerated new build programme will see us make meaningful reductions in levels of homelessness in Northern Ireland.
There is also specific mention of the cross sectoral programme – New Foundations – which has been developed to meet the housing needs of young people leaving the care system, to ensure the risk of homelessness is eliminated. In our new Corporate Strategy we will be working with other partners in scaling up our work to tackle chronic homelessness, through greater investment in the Complex Lives model and other prevention initiatives.
Demand for temporary accommodation and the impact on individuals and families who have been experiencing homelessness has been at unprecedented levels over recent years. While the NIHE’s statutory duty is to provide temporary accommodation, we believe that we should also have a statutory duty to prevent homelessness, as is the case in some other jurisdictions. We strongly believe this would enable the provision of more appropriate person-centred services, not to mention achieving greater value for public money.
We have been focussed on limiting the use of hotels and B&Bs – not only is it unsuitable for those needing temporary accommodation, it is also six times more expensive than privately rented single lets. I am pleased that we have increased our portfolio of single lets across every Council area over the last two years, and in doing so, have made several million pounds of savings on hotel and B&B accommodation and most recently, we have reduced the unit cost of hotel accommodation by 12 per cent. This is an important demonstration of the priority we attach to spending public money in the most appropriate way.
A significant milestone has been achieved with the Minister’s approval of our proposal allowing NIHE to acquire properties for temporary accommodation. This marks a major step forward in addressing immediate housing needs.
We are also tasked with delivering the Supporting People programme, which provides £80 million funding to 80 partner organisations across Northern Ireland. These organisations run over 800 housing related support services that help up to 20,000 people in Northern Ireland. These vital services, focused on older adults, younger people, disability support, mental health services, and homelessness prevention, have been at the core of our work in tackling health inequalities for over 20 years and will be vital in our future work.
Investing in homes
Having had several years of rent freezes which reduced our ability to invest in our homes, the past two years have seen small increases in rents, which in turn has given the NIHE significant additional investment capacity and we have not been found wanting. We will close the year 2024/25 having made £245 million investment in our homes, marking a 57 per cent increase over six years. This has been achieved through partnerships with contractors and our own in house team – NIHE Direct. Assuming rent levels remain stable, NIHE plans to invest approximately £750 million into its housing stock over the next three years. This will have very positive effects on local supply chains, and on skills and employment locally.
A pressing issue is to enable the NIHE borrowing to be reclassified, so that we can operate similarly to housing authorities across GB. The commitment in the Programme for Government to work towards this is most welcome as it will enable us to have a long term investment plan for our homes.
A large proportion of our investment will be invested on ensuring our homes are safe. Whilst Northern Ireland has not been subject to the building safety legislative framework introduced in England and Wales, we have introduced the health and safety measure featured in this legislation. From a standing start, we have introduced a new Building Safety function, and I believe are far ahead of the curve in terms of what the law requires of us to keep our tenants safe.
“NIHE seeks to transform public housing into a catalyst for societal change and to improve the health of our people and communities.”
We will continue to roll out our Action Plan on Damp and Mould. The improvement work which we will be carrying out is central to tackling damp and mould, but we also have been transforming how we engage with our tenants, ensuring we have the right stock condition data, so we can make the right interventions, first time. Tenants are now much more engaged on the issue, which is to be welcomed.
Our long-term goal is to upgrade all NIHE stock to an average of SAP Band C by 2030, contingent on borrowing powers. Furthermore, as the Home Energy Conservation Authority (HECA), we will collaborate with the Department for Communities to implement a replacement for Affordable Warmth initiatives, enhancing energy efficiency across homes.
Also crucial to this will be our continued work delivering adaptations to our homes and through Disabled Facilities Grants to ensure people have the right measures in places to live in their homes comfortably. We welcome and are contributing to the Department of Health and the Department for Communities strategic review of adaptations.
Our commitment to progress
Our Promise to Our Communities is more than a plan; it is rooted in community service and driven by an unwavering commitment to progress. Through partnerships across government departments and sectors, investing in skills development within the construction industry, addressing health inequalities through improved housing conditions, and aligning with ambitious government priorities like the Housing Supply Strategy – NIHE aims not only to meet but exceed expectations.
While NIHE recognises the importance of housing output, its mission extends beyond numbers. By leveraging its historic role and expertise, NIHE seeks to transform public housing into a catalyst for societal change and to improve the health of our people and communities.
