Housing | The British-Irish Council

Last week, BIC’s Housing Work Sector were hosted by the Isle of Man Government for a visit exploring the theme of ‘residential retrofitting’. As part of the visit, the group took part in site visits based in the Willaston Estate in Douglas, Jubilee Terrace, and the sustainable new Roundhouse community building in Braddan.

To begin the visit the group were welcomed to the Villa Marina on Harris Promenade, Douglas, where officials from the Isle of Man Government, the Welsh Government, Northern Ireland Executive and Government of Ireland gave presentations on their current work on residential retrofitting in their Administrations. The work sector then moved to Willaston Estate, where Douglas City Council is undertaking a multi-million-pound refurbishment and residential retrofitting project. Willaston Estate is the largest council estate on the Isle of Man and the multimillion-pound initiative aims to make homes warmer and more energy-efficient, whilst also building new sustainable apartments.

Delegates then had the opportunity to visit Braddan to see the residential retrofitting project at Jubilee Terrace, where there are major essential upgrades to social housing underway. The scheme focuses on energy efficiency, weatherproofing, and structural preservation.
On day two, the group had the opportunity to visit Cregneash Heritage Village, where they saw examples of traditional thatched homes in the traditional Manx style, unique to the Isle of Man.

These visits highlighted the important work being done across these islands to carry out essential upgrades to housing that will provide warmer, more energy-efficient homes for tenants whilst extending the lifespan of the buildings themselves. The site visits provided an excellent opportunity to highlight ongoing efforts to maintain and improve existing housing stock across the BIC administrations while enhancing comfort and reducing running costs for residents.

In early February, the BIC Housing Work Sector convened in Dublin where the eight Member Administrations explored initiatives being employed under the Government of Ireland’s new housing plan to activate and accelerate new homes delivery and provide affordable housing supports.

This visit was an important element of the implementation of the work plan agreed by Housing Ministers from across the eight BIC Administrations in Belfast in 2024. At the Ministerial meeting, Ministers committed to sharing approaches and information in relation to key areas of Housing policy development and implementation, including the exploration of Affordable Housing Models.

As part of the visit, the group took part in three site visits based in Dublin: Montpellier, The Iveagh Trust and Shanganagh Castle Estate.

To begin the visit the group were welcomed to Montpelier, an ambitious residential regeneration project situated in the heart of Dublin City. Construction commenced in February 2023 and will deliver 1,044 A-rated homes across social, private affordable and cost rental tenures.

The Work Sector then moved The Iveagh Trust, the oldest provider of social housing in Ireland. The Iveagh Trust was established by the Sir Edward Cecil Guinness in 1890 to provide quality housing for the “poorer of the working classes” in Dublin and London. The Trust now has over 2000 homes across Dublin.

On Day two of the visit, officials saw Shanganagh Castle Estate, the first major direct delivery project to be completed by the LDA in partnership with Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. The project was awarded the prestigious title of winner for the Placemaking Initiative of the year at the 2025 Business Post Property Awards: testament to the innovative design and forward-thinking approach of this landmark development and using a collaborative approach to delivering high quality affordable homes at scale.

The British-Irish Council Housing Ministerial meeting took place in Belfast on 19/20 September 2024, hosted by the Northern Ireland Executive.

The gathering saw a plenary meeting of the eight Member Administrations of the Council, and an afternoon of informative site visits.

PLENARY SESSION

In the plenary session, Ministers reviewed the work of the current programme of the Housing Work Sector. This includes areas such as approaches to design issues, accessing suitable and affordable housing, and the linkages between homelessness and drug and alcohol consumption. Looking ahead, Ministers agreed a programme for future work with the focus on the following five themes:

Residential Retrofit
Private Rental Sector
Affordable Housing Models
Attracting Private Sector Investment for Housing
Homelessness and Temporary Accommodation

At the plenary meeting, Ministers also heard an informative presentation by Justin Cartwright of the Chartered Institute of Housing on ‘Housing: A Whole System Approach’.

SITE VISITS

During the visit, the Ministers undertook site visits to view examples of innovative housing meeting a variety of housing needs. The group visited the King’s Hall site where Choice Housing Ireland Limited (CHIL) has completed a mixed-tenure apartment project. The project features a mix of private, affordable, and social housing. The apartments are also built utilising green technologies and sustainable materials for energy efficiency to lessen the ecological footprint.

The Ministers also visited the Lisburn premises of MACS (Mulholland After Care Services). During the visit they heard CEO Kate Martin and her staff explain the work of the MACS charity supporting vulnerable young people aged 16-25 at risk of homelessness, mental health challenges, or other issues. The MACS Longstone office offers housing support, mentoring, and programmes to help young people gain independence and build life skills. MACS’ aim is to empower young people through tailored interventions and community involvement, with a focus on well-being, personal development, and building confidence.

The Ministers expressed their appreciation of the value of the British-Irish Council as a forum for sharing information and experience in designing and delivering housing policy.

Northern Ireland Executive	Minister Gordon Lyons MLA, Department for Communities Aisling Reilly MLA, Junior Minister in the Executive
UK Government	Baroness Taylor of Stevenage Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Lords Minister for Housing and Local Government)
Welsh Government	Jayne Bryant MS Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government
Government of Ireland	Alan Dillon TD Minister of State with responsibility for Local Government and Planning
Scottish Government	Paul McLennan MSP, Minister for Housing
Government of Guernsey	Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, President of the Committee for the Environment and Infrastructure
Isle of Man Government	Hon. Tim Crookall, Minister for Infrastructure
Government of Jersey	Deputy Sam Mézec, Minister for Housing

In April 2024, British-Irish Council (BIC) Housing Work Sector officials travelled to Guernsey for a Private Rental Sector Policy workshop which focused on private rental challenges and ideas around policy solutions, across these islands.

There was a good wide-ranging discussion on respective approaches in the eight administrations to four specified areas- legal provision on tenant and landlord rights in regard to eviction; rent controls; housing quality standards; and financing.

Also, as part of the programme, the officials visited an Affordable Housing Development Programme, with the Guernsey Housing Association.