Housing Executive launches community cohesion strategy

The Housing Executive’s latest Community Cohesion Strategy was launched at the new Girdwood Community Hub on Friday 19 February 2016.

The strategy covers the period from 2015-2020 and aims to deliver on NIHE’s vision for housing; “…in which housing plays its part in creating a peaceful, inclusive, prosperous and fair society”.

The Housing Executive’s Director of Landlord Services Gerry Flynn launched the strategy and alluded to both the challenges which the strategy must overcome and the appetite among the people of Northern Ireland to see more mixed housing. Mr Flynn commented that 90% of NIHE estates are segregated and that this figure is higher in Belfast where 94% of estates are not mixed.  Despite the reality of segregated estates a majority of people (80%) surveyed in the Life and Times Survey expressed a desire to live in shared neighbourhoods but were unaware of how to go about creating a shared atmostphere.

Community cohesion strategy aims

The aims of the Housing Executive’s community cohesion work are

• to contribute to the creation of more dtable, safer and cohesive neighbourhoods
• to work I partnership with others to address the complex housing needs of a divided society
• to respond quickly and effectively to the needs of people in danger as a result of community conflict
• to facilitate and encourage mixed housing where this is practicable, desirable and safe.   

The strategy will be delivered across five themes:

• residential segregation and integration
• race relations
• communities in transition
• interface areas
• flags, emblems and sectional symbols.

Details on how exactly the Housing Executive intends to deliver on these themes are available in the full strategy which is available from nihe.gov.uk.