SOUTHSIDE
councillors have queried the methods used by Dublin City Council to compile its
social housing list.
The
council wrote to the approximately 26,000 people who were on the list in
February enquiring if they still wished to be considered for social housing.
Those
who did not respond were subsequently issued with a reminder letter in March
2011 advising them if they did not reply or make contact with the city council
that their application would be cancelled.
The
council informed Southside People that it cancelled the applications of 12,555
applicants and effectively deleted them from the housing list when they failed
to reply to their correspondence.
The
city council pointed out that it checked with An Post to ensure that all the
addresses on the letters it sent out to applicants were correct.
But
city councillors have expressed concerns that some of the applicants may have
not returned the forms for valid reasons.
In
its latest Housing Needs Assessment 2011, the local authority decided that
14,512 households have a legitimate need for social housing.
It
said that of these, 6,222 households would have their housing needs best met
outside the local authority’s social housing system.
Cllr
Mannix Flynn (Ind) expressed concern about the manner in which the local
authority deleted applicants from its social housing list and has called on the
council to review the matter.
“Many
people would have moved around to alternative accommodation because of various
circumstances and might not have received the letters,
? he said.
“I
have been inundated with calls from people who are concerned that they have
been knocked off the list.
?
He
added:
“I think that the method of contact to ascertain whether people are
eligible for a place on the housing list needs to be looked at. I don’t think
that it is appropriate to knock people off because they haven’t responded to
two correspondences.
?
Cllr
Criona Ni Dhalaigh (SF) said:
“I am concerned that those who did not return
their assessment forms might have literacy problems, or maybe some did not even
get them.
?
A
spokesperson for the council said the local authority is operating a grace
period until the end of this year.
“Any
person or family removed from the list may be reinstated if contact is made
with the council prior to December 2011 and subject to verification of their
new housing circumstances at that time,
? the spokesperson said.
“To date,
approximately 600 applicants who were cancelled earlier in the year have been
reinstated.
?