Pictured L-R Michael Carey, Chairman, The Housing Agency; Kevin Kelly, Chief Executive Officer, Mayo County Council; Seamus De Faoite, Senior Executive Officer, Cork County Council; Fiona Lawless, Head of Finance, Meath County Council and Bob Jordan, CEO, The Housing Agency.
Press Release
Originally issued Wednesday, 24th January 2024.
Seamus De Faoite, a Senior Executive Officer at Cork County Council, was awarded a Leadership in Housing bursary by The Housing Agency in Cork last week.
Launched in September 2023 at its Leadership in Housing conference, The Housing Agency’s new annual bursary award will support students to enroll on the Diploma in Leadership Development course at the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, geared towards experienced managers in decision-making positions.
Commenting on the bursary and The Housing Agency’s ongoing activity in Cork, Michael Carey, Chairman of the Board, said; “At The Housing Agency, we firmly believe that brave and thoughtful leadership is required to bring about real, positive change to meet our housing needs. Last September we held our Leadership in Housing conference, where we announced this new bursary, contributing towards fulfilling one of our core goals of building capacity in the housing sector. We need to ensure that we continue to develop strong leadership and nurture those leading housing organisations.
“Agile and impactful leaders are crucial to developing a well-resourced, motivated, and expert housing sector that can effectively adapt to change and overcome challenges to deliver new homes and thriving communities.”
Commenting on receiving the bursary award, Seamus De Faoite, Senior Executive Officer at Cork County Council, said; “I’m looking forward to furthering my leadership skills and bringing new knowledge to my role as senior executive officer in Cork County Council’s Housing Directorate. The opportunity to enroll in the Diploma in Leadership Development will be hugely beneficial to my career and the work I do in the housing sector.”
Building sectoral capacity is just one of The Housing Agency’s remits; it has also been managing and supporting a number of projects in Cork, including Croí Cónaithe (Cities) and the Cost Rental Equity Loan Scheme. These projects are part of work that The Housing Agency does to support the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage in delivering the national Housing for All plan.
Under the Croí Cónaithe (Cities) scheme, which aims to bridge the current viability gap between the cost of building apartments and the market sale price, there are currently 372 owner-occupier apartments in development in locations across Cork City. In total the scheme is planned to support the building of 5,000 apartments across five cities for sale to owner-occupiers up to 2026.
The Cost Rental Equity Loan, also provided by The Housing Agency, is a method for funding the delivery of Cost Rental housing by Approved Housing Bodies. Two cost rental schemes have delivered a total of 105 dwellings in Cork to date.
ENDS
Contact: Sara Byrne / Sorcha Mac Mahon, Alice Public Relations, Tel: 086-395 6396/ 087-7585337, Email: media@alicepr.com
Notes to Editors:
About The Housing Agency
The Housing Agency supports the development of sustainable communities across Ireland. It works to meet the nation’s housing needs by:
- Co-ordinating programmes that can transform how we live.
- Providing technical support to accelerate the delivery of housing projects.
- Using data and research to provide evidence-based solutions.
- Advising the Government on housing policies.
- Collaborating with all those involved in the housing sector in Ireland to ensure we are working as effectively as possible.
A State-funded body, The Housing Agency works mainly with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, local authorities and non-profit housing providers.
Follow The Housing Agency on:
- X: @HousingAgencyIE
- LinkedIn: @HousingAgencyIE
- Facebook: @HousingAgencyIE
