Almost 250 new homes built in Westmeath in year

Some 248 new homes were built in Westmeath in the 12 months to end of June 2022, Minister Peter Burke said this week, as he marked the first 12 months of the government’s Housing for All plan, citing the progress made in delivering housing for Westmeath.

In the 12 months to the end of July 2022, commencement notices for 275 homes were received in Westmeath, while up to the end of Q1 2022, planning permissions for 964 homes were granted in the county, (a 13.5% increase on the previous 12 months).

At the same time, approval was granted for seven new posts in Westmeath County Council for local authority housing delivery.

“When we launched Housing for All, our aim was that everyone should have access to a home to purchase or rent at an affordable price, built to a high standard and in the right place,” Minister Burke said.

That plan had been backed, he said, with a guaranteed over €4 billion a year in housing investment and a series of actions to deliver 300,000 new homes by 2030, including 90,000 social homes and 54,000 affordable homes.

“While there’s a lot of work still to do, we can see already, after the first 12 months, that the plan is working in Westmeath and across the country,” he said.

Other measures contained in Housing for All that would benefit Westmeath included that introduction of exemption from planning permission requirements for converting vacant pubs into homes.

“The existing exemptions to converting vacant commercial premises into homes in Westmeath have been extended. Between 2018 and 2021, 41 residential units were provided in Westmeath, and 19 notifications of exempted developments received,” Minister Burke said.

In 2021, the government provided €41.02m in total funding for housing to Westmeath County Council, a 55% increase on 2020, he continued.

“In 2021, 205 new social homes were delivered; and there was a 52% reduction in the number of households on the social housing waiting list in Westmeath at the end of 2021 compared to the first annual assessment conducted in September 2016.”

Commenting on the role of local authorities in delivering housing in Westmeath, Minister Burke said: “Westmeath County Council is playing a central role in delivering housing in the county. Over the last 12 months the Government has provided resources and funding to the council to help it deliver for people in Westmeath.

“I’ve recently issued guidelines to Westmeath County Council on the making of their county development plan to ensure it takes into account projected housing need so that sufficient new homes can be built in key areas of housing demand. We have also streamlined the processes for the procurement of social housing.”

Minister Burke also commented on progress in sustainability: “Compact growth has to be at the heart of housing provision and planning. Higher population densities will have upshots such as minimal transport demand and shorter travel distances. Since Housing for All was launched, we have made progress in developing legislation to introduce Land Value Sharing and a new concept, Urban Development Zones. These are key reforms in land management and planning, which will result in compact growth and curbs on land speculation.”