Delivering sustainable housing solutions: HAIL
Housing Association for Integrated Living (HAIL) has been operating since 1985, providing high-quality independent social housing with specialist mental health tenancy sustainment visiting supports. HAIL provides homes to people with long-term mental health support needs as well as general needs social housing, writes Martina Smith, HAIL CEO.
Our visiting tenancy sustainment model supports people to live independently and be integrated in the community. This promotes autonomy, recovery, stability, and full participation in society within regular housing settings rather than institutional environments.
Our supports are person-centred, flexible, and delivered in close collaboration with HSE mental health services and other community-based supports. HAIL currently owns 486 homes, approximately 70 per cent of which are for people with mental health support needs and 30 per cent for general needs tenants.
HAIL’s model is grounded in the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), particularly the right to independent living and inclusion in the community, ensuring full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Central to this approach is a commitment to valuing the voice of lived experience, ensuring that tenants’ perspectives inform how services are designed and delivered.
At a time when housing systems are under increasing pressure, HAIL’s approach demonstrates how integrated housing and visiting supports can deliver sustainable tenancies and long-term value. By combining housing provision with tailored, visiting supports, we address one of the key challenges facing the sector: how to ensure that tenancies are not only created, but sustained.
Our model offers a practical and scalable solution for supporting individuals with enduring mental health difficulties within mixed tenures and our general needs homes. HAIL’s tenancy sustainment rates consistently exceed 95 per cent.
HAIL also delivers strong value for money. While institutional and crisis-driven care settings can incur significantly higher costs, HAIL’s visiting supports operate at a comparatively low cost, reducing reliance on more intensive services while delivering positive outcomes for tenants.
As demand for housing continues to grow, there is an increasing need for solutions that are both effective and sustainable. Through strong partnerships with the DHLGH, local authorities, the HSE, the HFA, and developers, HAIL is well-positioned to expand its delivery and support the development of integrated housing solutions across Ireland.
T: 01 671 8444
E: info@hail.ie
W: www.hail.ie
