New rural housing guidelines will encourage Wexford emigrants to return to the places they ‘know and love’
Wexford PeopleLocal families, young people, and returning emigrants will have a real opportunity to put down roots in the places they “know and love” as part of new government policy on rural housing. That’s according to Fine Gael councillor for the Wexford Borough, Robbie Staples, who described the new draft proposals as “biggest overhaul of rural housing rules for two decades”.
Under the new guidelines standardised criteria for assessing local rural housing need will be introduced across the board with a “consistent approach” to rural zoning and designations across all local authorities.
Explaining how the process will work, Cllr Staples said the intention was to remove the barriers currently in place for those wishing to build houses in rural areas.
“These new changes will support people to construct one off-homes in the rural area they are from, even if they have a current house in a town or city. They will enable those who have an economic or social need to live in a rural location, including returning emigrants, to build a home - subject to meeting normal planning considerations,” he said.
“The standard rule in a rural area will be that if you have lived in that area for seven or more years at any point in your life you can build up to 10km from your current home.
“In city metropolitan areas, a person must have lived within 3km of the site for up to ten years. This is to stop rural areas turning into commuter suburbs. In certain high-amenity areas, a person must have lived within 5km of the site for up to ten years. This is to prevent encroachment on desirable scenic areas which are prone to holiday home use.
“To qualify under economic need, a person will have to demonstrate that their main job depends on living in a rural area (remote working will not count) and they need to live close to their workplace. This includes jobs like farming, equine, forestry, working in essential services such as teaching in local schools, or people starting or running a rural business.”
Stating that the changes to policy represent “a fundamental shift away from overly rigid and restrictive planning practices that have held rural communities back”, Cllr Staples believes they will encourage those living abroad to return home.
“These policy changes restore fairness and common sense to the planning system, giving local families, young people and returning emigrants a real opportunity to put down roots in the places they know and love.
“They will remove barriers that have caused frustration for too long and introduce common-sense measures that put people ahead of red tape. We want people from rural areas, which will now include villages and towns with a population of below 1500 population, to have the opportunity and flexibility to be able to live in the communities that they have always called home.”