This article is from page 1 of the 2014-09-02 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 1 JPG
THE amount of Government money allocated to Clare County Council for social housing has nosedived in recent years – at the same time as the need for that social housing has soared in the county, with Ennis worst hit. According to figures obtained by The Clare People , the Department of the Environment allocated just € 6.7 million to social housing projects in Clare in the four years from 2010 to 2013.
This represents a drop of more than 85 per cent on the € 46.9 million allocated by the department in the four previous years – between 2006 and 2009. While the county was in the middle of an economic boom in 2007, the Government allocated € 11.5m to build social housing in Clare. However, in 2012 when the construction and property markets in Clare were at the lowest ebb Clare County Council received just € 839,925 to provide social housing for the needy.
The number of people on the social housing waiting list in Clare has grown from 2,312 in October of 2012 to 3,066 in July 2014.
This housing crisis has meant dramatically rising rents are forcing low income families to the brink – with rent allowance no longer enough to cover rent.
According to the Clare Citizens Information Centre, the organisation has dealt with at least two Clare people in recent months who have been made homeless because their rent allowance does not cover rising rents. As of September 1, there were only 48 properties for rent in Ennis – with 400 the number needed in an area the size of Ennis.