AQO 2000/22-27 Oral question to the Minister for Communities
To ask the Minister for Communities for his assessment of how victims of domestic abuse can be better supported through the social housing system.
Asked by John Blair MLA on 8 May 2025
- Answered
- Oral
- Answered in the Chamber
- Tabled
- 8 May 2025
- Answer due by
- 19 May 2025
- Answered
- 19 May 202511 days after tabling
- Department
- Department for Communities
- Priority question
- No
Answer
Answered in the Assembly Chamber on 19 May 2025. Extract from the Official Report (Hansard), including any supplementary questions:
Mr Lyons
Victims of domestic abuse are provided with support to access and to maintain social housing. When applying for a social home, victims of domestic violence are awarded primary social needs points in the housing selection scheme. Following my decision to remove intimidation points from the housing selection scheme, all victims of violence, abuse and trauma are now able to access the same categories of points within the scheme for violence or the threat of violence.
Mr Blair
I thank the Minister for that reply. Can he give us any information on the work that his Department or its agencies might be doing with other bodies to ensure that progress is made in ensuring that victims of domestic abuse can be better supported to access social housing and on how the Department is helping to better shape such policies and partnerships?
Mr Lyons
Absolutely. We work with a number of organisations to ensure that that is the case. In particular, you will see the outworking of that in the Housing Executive's domestic abuse action plan. I believe that that has resulted in some good work with other organisations, including the PSNI. However, if the Member has any further suggestions on how we should engage or who we should engage with, I am more than happy to hear from him.
Ms Bunting
The Minister mentioned the removal of intimidation points and the impact that that might have on those who find themselves in a domestic abuse situation. Can he outline exactly what the impact might be and how victims of violence and abuse in general, as well as domestic abuse, can be assisted by his proposal to remove intimidation points?
Mr Lyons
First and foremost, this is the levelling of the playing field, and we have seen that already start to work out. Over the weekend, I received a very kind email from a constituent who, as a victim of domestic abuse and domestic violence, had been waiting for a long time and had always seemed to be passed over. She has now received the home that she had been waiting for for a long time. I hope that she is the first of many people who will be helped by this change in policy that will level the playing field. I do not believe that it will solve all the problems by itself, but it is an important start that we can make. I will continue to support, through the Supporting People programme or other actions that my Department or the Housing Executive can take, those who find themselves in that situation.