NIFHA urges multiyear housing funding and action on infrastructure

But Seamus Leheny, NIFHA’s chief executive, said such promises would “mean little” without direct action by government to financially support development. 

“It is far from ideal for housing associations to operate in an environment where they do not know their budget allocation until well past the midpoint of the financial year,” he said. “At one stage it looked like only about 500 homes would be budgeted for [in 2024-25], but housing associations have been working hard on the ground, actively building for the future, continuing to find sites and build new homes.”

He added that budgets needed to not just be provided in time but to increase in order to address the “huge” housing waiting list. 

Earlier in May, Department for Communities (DfC) representatives said they will push for more in-year capital allocations to boost the number of social homes that can start during 2025-26 in Northern Ireland, with initial funds only enough to meet delivery of around 1,000 – about half the target.

“We need a multiyear housing budget, which gives associations the ability to plan and construct around 2,200 homes every year,” said Mr Leheny, who also urged action to resolve Northern Ireland’s chronic lack of adequate wastewater services. 

Earlier this year, housing associations warned that developments totalling thousands of homes cannot proceed unless Northern Ireland Water installs new infrastructure.

“There is a lot of uncertainty ahead, including seeing how the wastewater issues is resolved, the ongoing impact of inflation on the price of materials and the increased National Insurance costs on labour,” Mr Leheny said.

“Housing associations are navigating a challenging sector in tricky times, and we need government to step up alongside them to tackle the housing crisis, with an increased certainty and strategic investment, which are key to sustaining and expanding the supply of high-quality homes for those who need them most.”

A spokesperson for the DfC said “The initial estimate for social home construction in 2024-25 was 400 units. Thanks to additional funding, the Social Housing Development Programme achieved 1,504 starts.

“Capacity constraints in water and sewerage infrastructure significantly hinder development, a recurring concern in discussions with stakeholders, especially given rising housing stress. 

“The minister supports multiyear budgets to enable housing associations to plan effectively.

“This year, the minister has allocated over 80% of available funding to the Social Housing Development Programme, targeting 900 to 1,000 new homes. 

“The minister recognises that this is still significantly short of the target and bids will be submitted in-year to the Department of Finance to address the shortfall of funding to meet this Programme for Government key pillar.”