Housing staff on stress leave

Concerns have been raised over a growing problem of council housing staff being subjected to aggressive behaviour by members of the public.

In a discussion about the local housing situation at last week’s meeting of Nenagh Municipal District, Senior Executive Officer Seán Lonergan reported “a number of incidents of anti-social behaviour” involving front desk staff. This extended to staff being subjected to abuse over the phone, and also on social media. Mr Lonergan said the problem worsened over the last year and resulted in staff members going out on stress leave.

Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael O’Meara was “very concerned” at this situation and wanted the message to go out that any aggressive behaviour towards staff is “totally unacceptable”. Cllr O'Meara said a lot of the problem is “fuelled by social media” and that he has had to caution people over comments directed towards him as a councillor; he had considered reporting one incident in particular to the gardaí.

“A certain element is creeping in,” Cllr O'Meara warned, adding that the council should consult with An Garda Síochána on the matter. He accepted that many people are in difficult situations with regard to housing, and the council's housing staff are “at the coal face” in dealing with them.

In support, Cllr Séamie Morris agreed that the situation is worsening. He also appealed to people to be mindful of their conduct when engaging with staff; abusive behaviour would not help their case.

Mr Lonergan said the vast majority of people treat staff very well. But he regretted that there is a minority using “all forms of media to abuse staff”.

793 ON HOUSING LIST

The meeting was informed that there are 793 approved applicants awaiting social housing in Nenagh Municipal District. Of these, 489 are in Nenagh town.

A further 62 applicants are in Ballina with 61 in Newport. Housing Officer Kieran Malone said a scheme at Mulkear View, Newport - where the council is building 11 housing units - is nearing the end of construction. He expected that occupants could move into the new homes in January.

The council has tried to acquire sites in Ballina but has been “blown out of the water by private buyers”. Mr Malone said the construction of another 16 houses in Borrisokane is also nearing completion with an occupation timeframe of January also. He said the council would in the coming weeks appoint a contractor for the construction of four houses in Ardcroney.

Cllr Morris observed that the Nenagh district has a high housing refusal rate of 23%. But he said there are often “genuine reasons” for people to turn down a house; these might include past issues over drugs or abuse.

Mr Lonergan agreed that many people have genuine grounds for refusing a house. He hoped the refusal rate would decline after the council introduces a new Choice-Based Letting (CBL) scheme early next year. This scheme allows people to make expressions of interest in vacant properties owned by the council, and to bid for the houses they actually want. It has helped reduce refusal rates in other counties.

PEOPLE SLEEPING IN CARS

Cllr John Carroll said there are people who have become homeless and are sleeping in cars and lock-up sheds. He called for a course for people who are at risk of becoming homeless.

Mr Lonergan said two homeless service officers have been appointed and there is a new HAP Place Finder service in Nenagh to help people who become homeless. He said the council is exceeding every target set for it by the Department of Housing, and he made the point that 60% of people on the housing waiting list are in receipt of social housing support.

The housing market in general has failed because of the private sector, Mr Lonergan said. “The private sector has not stepped up, particularly in the larger towns.” Cllr Joe Hannigan argued that infrastructure such as wastewater provision needs to be in place in order to encourage private developers to build houses. “The capacity is not there for the private sector to get into building,” he said.

Cllr Carroll agreed with Cllr Morris that planning laws on the building of timber-frame structures should be eased; so too did Cllr O’Meara, who pointed out that such structures are environmentally-friendly as opposed to carbon-heavy concrete.