ALONE calls for extra €12.5m for Housing Adaptation Grants in Budget 2026 to give older people independence and security

Dublin, 8th September 2025:  ALONE, the organisation that supports older people to age at home, is calling on the government to increase funding for Housing Adaptation Grants in October’s budget by €12.5m. 

The call comes as several local authorities fully or partially restrict access to the grants for funding reasons, with some suspending applications until 2026 due to the exhaustion of allocated funds.  

One-third of local authorities have been reported to be experiencing difficulties operating the grants in 2025, and ALONE is aware of nine local authorities to which applications for Housing Adaptation Grants are currently closed, or partially closed. While most local authorities continue to process applications as normal, ALONE says the disruption elsewhere highlights the need to ensure the scheme is adequately funded. 

ALONE CEO Seán Moynihan said: “Housing Adaptation Grants can be the difference between an older person staying in their home and keeping their independence or having to make alternative arrangements which can upend their lives”. 

Housing adaptations accounted for 35% of the housing issues presented by older people to ALONE in 2024. 

Two thirds of these grants are required for bathroom adaptations – a prerequisite for independence and dignity, as well as for safety, with data suggesting that 80% of falls at home occur in the bathroom. 

Access ramps, stairlifts, central heating and boiler installation/repair are also key areas for housing adaptations – essential to keeping older people living safely in their own homes. 

In its costed pre-budget submission, ALONE is calling for an extra €12.5m to adequately address existing demand for Housing Adaptation Grants among Ireland’s ageing population.  

In 2010, when the population of those aged 65 and upwards in Ireland stood at 515,100 people, 13,588 grants were funded nationwide. In 2025, with that population having spiked to 833,200 people, only 13,000 grants are reported to have been funded. 

Moynihan said: “It’s a sad fact that the number of grants funded today is basically the same as it was in 2010. When you think of the growth in our population of older people, that’s simply not good enough – and it’s certainly not going to address the scale of need in years to come. We can’t leave older people in limbo, unsure if they’re going to be safe to stay in their own homes, and we can’t have local authorities running out of funding to allocate in May or June.” 

ALONE is also calling on government to simplify the application process, which many of the older people ALONE works with consider too complicated and protracted – an additional barrier to access for many of those who need works done most urgently. 

Concluding, Moynihan called on the government to meet its commitments to older people by ensuring this vital lifeline is adequately resourced in October’s budget, “We appreciate the government’s commitment to supporting older people through the Housing Adaptation Grant, but we need to close those gaps if we’re earnest about our approach to ageing. If we don’t, the consequences for so many older people are just too serious – loss of independence, loss of dignity in older age, and the potential for serious injury or even worse.”