You may be able to get a grant if

• you, or someone in your home has a disability and
• your home could be adapted to make it more suitable for those needs

A disabled facility grant can pay towards work that makes it easier for you to manage and move around your home

You need an occupational therapist to recommend the work that needs to be done.

Amount of disabled facilities grant 

The maximum grant is usually £25,000

The Housing Executive can increase this by a further £25,000 in special circumstances. They need the Department for Communities to approve any increase.  

The amount you get depends on your income. You might have to pay something towards the work. You won't have to pay anything if

• the work is to make the home more suitable for a disabled child and
• you get child benefit for this child

Work that a Disabled Facilities Grant can cover

A disabled facilities grant will only cover work that an occupational therapist recommends. This can include

• improving access to a bathroom, living room or bedroom
• installing bathroom facilities
• adapting kitchen facilities to make preparing and cooking food easier
• adapting lighting and heating controls
• improving the heating system

Disabled facilities grants for owners 

You can apply for a disabled facilities grant if you own your home.

You need to prove that  

• you own the property or you are about to buy it
• you or someone who will be living with you has a disability

Disabled facilities grants for tenants 

You can apply for a disabled facilities grant if you rent from a private landlord.  

You need to prove that

• your landlord is happy for the work to go ahead
• your landlord will let you, or the disabled person, keep living in the home for at least 5 years
• you or someone who will be living with you has a disability

Applying for a Disabled Facilities Grant

First, you should contact

• your GP or
• your Health & Social Care Trust or
• your social worker

Explain that you need an occupational therapist to assess you to recommend you for a grant.  

Help applying for a Disabled Facilities Grant

You can get help to apply from

• The Housing Executive grant team in your area
• Shelter NI [1]
• Radius Housing Association [2]

Approving a grant

It can take a long time to get your grant approval. These things can all delay your application

• waiting for an occupational therapist assessment
• the Housing Executive has to wait to renew its grants budget
• waiting for appointments with architects, building control or planning officers

The Housing Executive will send you a written approval of your application. You can't start any work until you get this.  

This approval will explain

• how much grant money you will get
• when you have to finish the work by

Getting the grant money

You will get the grant money when

• the work has been completed and
• the OT and NIHE are satisfied with the quality of the work and
• you have given NIHE all the receipts and certificates for work done.

You can get some of the money before all the work has completed if the grants officer approves this payment.