Cork County Council to quiz housing waiting list applicants on failure to register

Cork County Council is to survey anyone on its housing waiting list who has not registered for its choice- based lettings (CBL) system to ask why they have not done so.

The CBL system was introduced by the local authority in late 2015 and allows those seeking a council property to ‘bid’ on those listed, according to their requirements and areas of choice.

Figures provided to the Irish Examiner earlier this year as part of a nationwide survey of councils regarding housing offers and refusals showed that in 2015 and 2016 Cork County Council had 468 housing offers refused, of which 422 were deemed “unreasonable refusals”.

One source told the Irish Examiner this week that the council was frustrated that some people who can avail of the CBL system have not been expressing an interest in properties that might suit them.

The move also comes after comments by Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy, following last Friday’s housing summit with local authority managers, when he said: “The issue of refusals of reasonable offers of accommodation by those in emergency accommodation will be urgently examined with a view to a consistent approach to such refusals being implemented nationally.”

CBL is in operation in all three divisions of Cork county and yesterday a council spokesperson said: “Cork County Council is shortly going to survey all applicants who have not registered with the CBL system to date, in order to determine the reasons why they have not done so, with a view to improving access opportunities.

“All assistance is given to any applicant who has difficulty accessing the online web-based system, with facilities available in our three divisional offices and in all libraries throughout the county.”

The survey is likely to include some of those in the local authority area who have registered as homeless.

The local authority said certain categories of property, such as some housing for the elderly or those with special needs, may be allocated outside the CBL system for estate management.

It said that assistance was available through the various integrated options such as its Homeless Action team, tenancy sustainment officers, and the Homeless Unit “to encourage all homeless applicants to bid on CBL properties and to avail of other social housing supports such as the Housing Assistance Payments and vacancies that may present themselves through the Approved Housing Bodies”.

The council spokesperson said it was hoped, via these measures, to ensure that no homeless applicant would be in a position where they would not be able to express an interest in a property under the CBL system.