Ireland

Trinity Housing : The Sustainable Housing Association

Trinity HousingTrinity Housing Ltd has been registered with the Department for Social Development since 1977, and is  a well-trusted developer providing Social  Housing for the Elderly, General Needs Family Housing and Supported Accommodation.  It also works closely with other organisations such as Health and Social Care Trusts to meet the needs of clients who require a higher level of support.

Trinity is also one of the founders of Apex Procurement NI Ltd, a firm established in 2009, for delivering Social Housing in accordance with the Northern Ireland Department for Social Development Procurement Strategy.

Having secured a reputation as a Housing Association offering expertise and a keen desire to communicate clearly with tenants, Trinity Housing Association is constantly reviewing their schemes with regard to providing innovative developments.

The Tudor Phase 4 project in Belfast is also in the pipelines, with a completion date of March 2012. The development is set over three sites: Agnes Street, Tudor Place and the Crumlin Road. When complete, the Agnes Street site will consist of: 2 x 5 people 4 bedroom general needs houses, 2 x 7 people 4 bedroom general needs houses and 1 x 6 person 4 bedroom wheelchair home. The Tudor Place site will comprise 2 x 5 person 3 bedroom general needs houses, whilst the Crumlin Road site will consist of 1 x 6 person 4 bedroom general needs house and 1 x 5 person 4 bedroom general needs house.

 Bridge Street, Downpatrick 

Recently, Trinity Housing Association has collaborated with the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust and the Dementia Services Development Centre to create Supported Housing for those left more vulnerable with the illness.

Located on Bridge Street, Downpatrick, they have built a new Supported Housing Project comprising: twelve x three-person, two-bedroom apartments for the frail elderly with mild dementia; two x two-person, two-bedroom apartments and ten x one-person, one-bedroom apartments, for those suffering with moderate dementia.  All built to wheelchair standard.Trinity Housing

The scheme will be assessed under the Dementia Audit Tool, and aims to achieve ‘Gold Standard’ for the Best Practise, maximising funding to provide the highest standard of accommodation for the client group.

In order to minimise the environmental impact of the building, the scheme was designed to Code for Sustainable Homes Code Level 3 Standard, decreasing CO2 emissions as far as possible by reducing heat loss and making use of a renewable energy resource with the inclusion of a Biomass Heating System.

In terms of land use, the building was specifically tailored to the site to maximise the site potential, yet also respect the historic significance of its location. The building groups together a series of self-contained units around landscaped gardens and terraces. This promotes outdoor leisure and recreational activities by providing a safe, secure and stimulating environment, while meeting all requirements of the Secured By Design programme.

Grove Street 

Trinity’s concern for sustainability is carried through to all their recent developments, including a building project in Grove Street East, Belfast, which will be Northern Ireland’s very first Housing Association Scheme meeting Code for Sustainable Home Code Level 4 requirements.

This project involves the construction of seventeen x two- and three-bedroom houses for general needs accommodation, and incorporates several ecologically-friendly features, to reduce CO2 emissions by 44%. These features include solar panels, low-energy technology, improved insulation and air-tightness, combined with air-source heating system and whole-house heat recovery and ventilation.

The use of these technologies grows out of Trinity’s sense of responsibility, a care for the environment and for those who will occupy the new accommodation. While these houses boast great ‘green’ credentials, such features will reduce fuel and water costs, another benefit to future tenants, helping to create sustainable homes for the future.

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