Noteworthy

Explore the stories that matter to you ...

Open

PIPE DREAM: Are delays in water infrastructure upgrades holding up rural development?

Ireland

It is government policy to encourage development of rural towns and villages due to the environmental, climate and social benefits for society including people living close to services, reducing car dependency and strengthening local communities.

11 Backers raised €370 of €2200

Open

NO ROOM: How difficult is it for disabled people to secure a home in Ireland?

Ireland

There is a crisis within a crisis for disabled people who are left homeless or in unsuitable accommodation.

8 Backers raised €410 of €3275

Open

HIGH RISE: Are councils accounting for the impact of sea level rise in planning decisions?

Ireland

As climate change takes hold in Ireland, storms, sea-level rise and acidification will become more intense, with coastal flooding and erosion further impacting our coastline.

5 Backers raised €440 of €3890

Open

BUNGALOW BLITZ: Is our rural housing model bad for sustainable planning?

Ireland

One-off housing in rural Ireland has been a bone of contention for at least half a century. In the 1970s, An Foras Forbartha - the precursor to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - warned that scattered rural housing was costing the State up to five times more to service than closely knit dwellings for road maintenance and supply of electricity, waste, and other services.

6 Backers raised €145 of €2880

Open

DERELICTION OF DUTY: What is the impact of dereliction on housing in Cork city?

Cork

The population of Cork is set to grow by almost 40% by 2031, with demands for accommodation set to swell in tandem. And already high rents are expected to rise too.

3 Backers raised €20 of €2960

Open

FALLING DOWN: Is our building inspection regime papering over the cracks?

Ireland

In the wake of the Mica scandal in Donegal, there have been renewed calls for a mandatory inspection regime during construction of all builds, similar to the system in Northern Ireland.

3 Backers raised €120 of €2760

Open

BUILDING BLOCKED: Where has Ireland fallen down on social housing policy?

Ireland

Ireland has become a country where the idea of social and affordable housing has gone from a near certainty to a vague aspiration for many generations of would-be homeowners in the space of a few decades.

8 Backers raised €160 of €4035

Open

KIDS IN CARE: Are children falling through the cracks of the care system?

Ireland

Almost 6,000 children are currently living in care in Ireland, with more than 90% of those in foster care. As of September 2020, 94% of children in care had an allocated social worker, meaning almost 350 children did not have this support.

6 Backers raised €100 of €2330

Open

GENERATION REGENERATION: Will Limerick city ever get the chance it was promised to eliminate deprivation?

Limerick

Cuts, revisions and delays have resulted in under delivery of housing and controversy over the regeneration of Limerick, over a decade after a plan was launched to transform the city.

13 Backers raised €385 of €3320

Open

RADON AWARE: Is the State doing enough to protect families from this cancer-causing dangerous gas?

Ireland

Radon is a radioactive gas linked to 350 lung cancer cases each year in Ireland – the second largest cause after smoking - with one-third of the country classified as a high radon area by the EPA.

4 Backers raised €92 of €1620

Completed

TOUGH START: Is the opportunity gap for Traveller children ever going to close?

Ireland

Children in the Irish Traveller community are at a disadvantage from the moment they are born. Infant mortality is over three times higher, suicide is six to seven times higher and life expectancy is over a decade lower than the general population.

69 Backers raised €2130 of €2130

Open

IN A FIX - Why are people still being exposed to mould, sewage and pests in local authority housing?

Ireland

Social housing in Ireland was found in violation of human rights in 2017 by the European Committee of Social Rights due to the presence of sewage, contaminated water, dampness and persistent mould.

2 Backers raised €70 of €2390

Completed

SHORT-TERM LET, LONG-TERM PAIN: Why do councils struggle to put a stop to properties being used exclusively on sites like Airbnb?

National

Property owners can pull in hundreds of euro per night renting out homes as round-the-year accommodation on platforms like Airbnb and hotel booking sites, making similar amounts in a week to what they could otherwise expect to receive in a month or more from a long-term tenant.

5 Backers raised €800 of €800

Completed

NOT SO FAST: Strategic Housing Development speeds up planning process for developers but is it helping increase the supply of accommodation?

Ireland

In June 2017, Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy introduced a new system of fast-track planning for housing developments.

2 Backers raised €404 of €400

Completed

SELLING THE FAMILY SILVER: Dublin City Council's plans to 'consolidate' 33 valuable depot sites.

Dublin

Across Dublin city, there are a network of 33 council depot sites – many of them located on prime development land.

4 Backers raised €100 of €100