North Down - Northern Ireland Housing Executive

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Kilcooley Neighbourhood Renewal Area has recently received over £200k in funding for two projects, aimed at addressing its many health and well-being problems. A family programme will support parents and children from pre-natal to post primary school age through a range of tailored services, and a healthy living centre will promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle through the provision of an extension to the existing allotment scheme. Following public consultation we have recently begun implementation of the new Rural Action Plan 2013-15. The plan contains over 50 actions which we will undertake over the next two years. We intend to build on the success of the Rural Action Plan 2009- 12 which saw targets for new build a nd Warm Homes exceeded. We have included actions to explore new ways to deliver social and affordable housing in rural areas. We will continue to consult with our Rural Residents’ Forum to ensure any new policies are rural proofed as well as scrutinizing existing services. The Rural Action Plan demonstrates our continued commitment to delivering vibrant and sustainable rural communities. In North Down, we support physical and community regeneration through a number of activities: • We continue to work in partnership with Kilcooley Neighbourhood Renewal Partnership Board, Kilcooley Community Forum, South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust and DSD to tackle disadvantage in Kilcooley Neighbourhood Renewal Area. Land in the estate has been provided to facilitate the extension to the allotment scheme; • As part of the SPOD Programme, we continue to work with partner organisations delivering a range of projects in Rathgill and Harbour Ward relating to health, education, youth and inter-generational activities; • North Down Community Network (NDCN) has been awarded over £400k from the Big Lottery Fund’s Reaching Out: Empowering Young People Programme. The project is aimed at supporting the engagement, celebrating the potential and showcasing the achievements of young people from North Down. Funding will be directed at Breezemount, Holywood and Clandeboye areas to encourage interaction between, and within, housing estates, supporting young people with education and training, and organising activities to promote positive life choices; • We continue to support community development through the funding and oversight of Supporting Communities Northern Ireland (SCNI) which provides advice and support to local community groups; 32
• We continue to work with local community groups, supporting initiatives such as Whitehill Community Association’s ‘Handyman Scheme’ established to offer an affordable property maintenance service to local residents; • We support the regeneration of brownfield sites, including government surplus sites, where possible, for social housing. In the past year, construction of Oaklee’s Cat 1 Elderly scheme at Central Avenue, Bangor continued and is now nearing completion. Regeneration of West Green in Holywood has recently commenced; • During 2012/13 housing associations commenced 6 social housing units at 1-3 Donaghadee Road Groomsport to help meet rural housing need in North Down. Action plan 2013/14 • Continue to focus on urban renewal and estate-based strategy programmes; • Support neighbourhood renewal and the SPOD programme through partnership working to tackle disadvantage; • Continue to work with community groups and NDCN; • Continue to work with DSD and SCNI to deliver a range of programmes to the local community; • Publish our Rural Action Plan 2013-15 and continue to work on behalf of rural communities; • Implement our programme of latent demand testing; • Carry out a hotspot study to identify potential sites for social housing in Groomsport. 3.5 Objective 4 - Delivering quality services We recognise the importance of working closely with local communities and their representatives. The changes to the structure of local and regional management will not affect service delivery. To understand our customers’ needs we use techniques such as customer surveys whilst also comparing the quality and efficiency of our services with other organisations. The following processes identify areas for improvement: We are currently reviewing our Housing Selection Scheme. A consultation paper proposes amendments to the rules to align it with changes in housing benefit, in light of welfare reform. 33
Page 1 and 2: North Down District Housing Plan &
Page 3 and 4: Contents Foreword .................
Page 5 and 6: Following the Northern Ireland Audi
Page 7 and 8: Housing market statistics • Accor
Page 9 and 10: Corporate Objective 3: Building str
Page 12 and 13: Section 1 Regional Context 1.1 Intr
Page 14 and 15: The UK Government is remodelling th
Page 16: 1.6 House Condition Survey - 2011 F
Page 19 and 20: The Northern Ireland Housing Land A
Page 21 and 22: • Potential for growth in the int
Page 23 and 24: Estate agents report there is suffi
Page 25: Table 3: Social housing statistics
Page 28 and 29: In line with the proposed separatio
Page 30 and 31: In a move to avoid disputes over de
Page 32 and 33: 3.3 Objective 2 - Supporting indepe
Page 36 and 37: • The Continuous Tenant Omnibus S
Page 38 and 39: to 66 at 2011. The SAP rating takes
Page 40 and 41: Activities organised for the offici
Page 42 and 43: “I couldn’t believe how nice th
Page 44 and 45: Appendix 1 Social Housing Developme
Page 46 and 47: Appendix 2 Maintenance and grants i
Page 48 and 49: Appendix 3 Social Housing Need Asse
Page 50 and 51: Appendix 5 Housing Executive stock
Page 52: This document is available in alter

North Down - Northern Ireland Housing Executive

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