FUNDING of €16.2m has been allocated to accelerate retrofitting of social homes in Cork.

Minister of State Christopher O’Sullivan announced funding of €140m for local authorities under the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) to support the retrofit of around 3,500 social homes - an increase of €50m on 2025.

As part of this funding, Cork City Council will receive €7m and Cork County Council €9.2m.

Along with this funding, Minister O’Sullivan confirmed that the average grant available per property across a local authority’s annual retrofit programme will increase from €34,000 to €38,000.

‘The Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme has made a huge impact nationally and across both Cork City and County Councils in terms of the quality of our housing stock and in addressing the challenges of climate change,’ he said.

‘Nationally, over 11,000 homes have been deep retrofitted since the scheme was first introduced. We are in the middle of a housing crisis and, as Minister, I will do everything in my power to deliver the homes we need at scale, but we must also make sure that our existing housing stock is brought up to a very high standard.

‘These homes will be safer, cleaner, and healthier for those living in them and better for our environment.’

Figures recently released by Cork County Council showed that tenants in retrofitted council homes on average reduced their energy bills by more than half.