AQW 12602/22-27

Ms Kellie Armstrong
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 28/05/2024
Answered On Date: 17/06/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities (i) whether housing associations are required to meet the standards outlined in the Housing Association Guide to receive funding from his Department; and (ii) what process the Department follows to ensure that the standards specified in the Housing Association Guide in relation to the completion of electrical safety inspections have been met before allocating funding.

Answer:

The Department's Housing Association Guide sets out the design standards required by the Department for all new build social housing schemes that receive Housing Association Grant (HAG).

There are no standards specified in the Housing Association Guide in relation to the completion of electrical safety inspections in new build social housing properties. This would be a matter for individual Housing Associations (HA). At practical completion stage, Housing Associations will submit to Housing Executive a claim for payment which is conditioned on self-certifications by the HA to include that the dwellings produced comply with my Department’s design and procurement requirements. The Housing Executive do not seek or check electrical testing certificates before payment.