Sustaining Tenancies to offer £3 million in funding

Emma Geddis, Sustaining Tenancies Grant Funding Programme Manager explains: 

“The Programme, which was first introduced in 2021, was developed to ensure that Housing Executive tenants are supported to create more resilient, sustainable tenancies in the short, medium and long term, and in particular, to help vulnerable customers at greater risk of tenancy breakdown.

“To date, we have invested approximately £3 million which has supported 52 projects across Northern Ireland, providing valuable support to our tenants. 

"We are now encouraging organisations in the voluntary, community and charitable sector to again apply for funding for grants between £5,000 and £100,000.”

“Priority funding areas have been identified for the next round of this funding process which opens on Monday 22nd July. We would welcome applications for projects which address these issues,” Emma said.

The priority funding areas are:

• Early tenancy support for new Housing Executive tenants (within the first 12 months of a tenancy starting);
• Projects that help Housing Executive tenants to manage their tenancies and look after their homes;
• Projects that provide practical and social support to care experienced young tenants (under the age of 25) to set up a tenancy or build resilience in an existing Housing Executive tenancy, and strengthen their community ties;
• Practical support within the home for older Housing Executive tenants (does not include therapeutic support for medical conditions e.g. hoarding);
• Intensive support for Housing Executive tenants with acute mental health issues or other vulnerabilities in localities where there are gaps in services;
• Crisis intervention models.

This two-step application process opens on Monday, 22nd July for expressions of interest for projects which last up to 36 months and closes on Thursday 8th August at 4pm.  

This stage of the process requires the completion of a short application form, which will enable the Housing Executive to determine the eligibility and suitability of the project for funding.

The eligibility check is an administrative check to determine the eligibility and suitability of the project for funding. The submission will be reviewed by a panel made up of Housing Executive staff who will decide if a project will progress to stage two.

Projects which are successful at stage one will then be invited to complete a full application form, which will require more detail about the objectives, project plan and breakdown of costs. The group or organisation applying for the funding will also be asked to showcase their project at a short meeting with one of our funding panels. 

More information on the programme and the application process is available online at:

Sustaining Tenancies Grant Funding

The Sustaining Tenancies Grant Funding programme is open to constituted groups within the community, voluntary and charitable sector operating in Northern Ireland. 

This includes Housing Community Network groups, Residents’ groups, and Social Enterprises that have registered charitable status and CICs (Community Interest Companies) that are limited by guarantee.